Less Than Human
by Alcibie
Summary: Sequel to "Fragility". The Doctor and Donna travel to 2075 and join the first evacuation of humans to a different planet in an attempt to prevent a terrible crime.
1. Parenting Skills

"Sir," Private Newman looked nervous, "you asked to see me." He stood in the doorway of the small control room, as if afraid to come too close. He was a poor choice of accomplice on such a mission but his expertise had won him the confidence of the pilots. Without that, neither of them would have gotten on board.

"Yes," Professor Anderson stood up, "I want to know about your progress. You're monitoring the machine?"

"We're fairly sure it's fully operational, Sir."

"Fairly sure?"

"Well...without testing it. It will take..."

"Never mind," he said impatiently, "you can give me a detailed report in writing. I happen to know that it is working perfectly.

"Sir?"

Professor Anderson didn't elaborate. No point terrifying the man. Yet.

"I want you to write something down."

Newman hurriedly produced a typepad.

"_Miss Stokes_," the Professor began, "_before you undertake to assist your new found friends in their endeavour, kindly remember your little friend and her little secret which you were so desperate to conceal from us..."_

"Stokes," Newman interrupted, forgetting himself, "as in Agent Clara Stokes? Sir, we have no idea where she is! She's in exile! You...you fired her." He trailed off.

"Donna Noble confirmed that Clara Stokes is in league with _him_," the Professor said calmly, "I want this message given to her when she arrives here with him."

"Here, Sir? She can't possibly arrive here! There's no way."

"But she will, Newman. Look," he produced a photo and passed it to the younger man, "this photo will be taken in three days time."

"Three days...but that's this room! How would that be possible?"

"Exactly."

"Sir, you need to destroy that picture." Now Newman sounded terrified, "the machine is still delicate. You can't walk around with a photo that hasn't been taken yet! How did you get it?"

"Never mind that," the Professor calmly tore up the photo.

"And the man? Is that him?"

"Precisely. Now, may I continue?"

"Of course, Sir. Sorry Sir." Newman kept his eyes firmly on the typepad.

...

"_What_ did you say?" Donna Noble said, her voice rising on each syllable.

"I _said_," the Doctor was staring intently at the console screen, "I thought we might have a go at becoming parents."

Donna backed away a few steps, "what part of that sentence could I have just heard wrong?"

The Doctor looked up at her. He had that expression she'd come to know so well...his mind was in about a million different places.

"This place we're going to," he said thoughtfully, "well, eventually, it involves a spaceship. And about 200 children. And a few sets of parents."

Donna sat down, "Doctor, call me thick, but I'm not getting this. We were on our way to the _time agency_."

"Well, in a way. We're going to the year 2075 because the Time Agency are going there. It's one chance in a lifetime to get the big wigs all in one place and time at once. Very hard to track them down otherwise."

"So...children and parents fit into this, how?"

"2075..." The Doctor sat beside her, "it's a really important year on Earth. First of all, you're all under threat. Asteroid. Heading straight for you. You get ten months warning."

"Oh God!" Donna immediately thought of her mother and granddad then realised he was talking about over 60 years from now. The thought made her feel a bit lonely.

"Is that it?" she asked timidly, "does it...destroy the earth?"

"Oh no! It gets knocked off course...just skims past you in the end!"

"Right...good," Donna said uncertainly, "and so?"

"It's what happens as a result of that threat that's important," the Doctor said, "there's the usual things...underground shelters, ingenious, as it happens. Weapons you've never developed before. See, by then, you're on speaking terms with five or six other civilisations. You get good advice! Armies take control...law and order are a bit of a problem. And behind the scenes, there's a little experiment going on. 200 children...sons and daughters of the most elite and influential. Evacuated, just like the second world war, except this time it's to another planet!"

"Which one?"

"Vira...remember the haunted house? Lovely planet, that one. And, most like Earth of all the planets they're in touch with. The plan is sold to the parents, literally sold, I might add...that their children will be kept safe etc. etc. But really, it's insurance."

"Insurance?"

"For the survival of the human race! The human population faces a big decline at best...if the asteroid hits, what's left of them will be dramatically altered, wouldn't you say? Trying to survive in the wilderness. The plan is that these children will be nurtured and educated, best of everything, and returned to earth to keep the population going and hopefully, to save what's left of it and of course, to populate it further. Rule it even, if you like. Restore some civilisation."

"Yeah but...the asteroid didn't happen. So the children just come home?"

"No. That's the thing. See, it takes massive amounts of money and manpower and what have you to get those children off the planet in ten months. The Earth is still in an uproar long after the threat has passed. It's going to take years to get them back. And when that time passes, the children don't want to leave, their foster families want them to stay, and it's not worth the time or money to send for them if they refuse to go."

"They didn't want to come home?"

"Well, not then. Later on, they do and it's organised, through Vira this time. But by then, the children are grown up and married and have children of their own! And most of them have married Virans! Do you see, Donna? They're the first humans to reproduce with other species! It's the beginning! 'Course, typical humans, when they get back to Earth, no one wants to know them. No one knows what to do them. The children, not being complete humans and their parents...who barely remember Earth anymore. They don't fit in anywhere. So they travel further...and this creates a curiosity and finally an acceptance among both humans and Virans. Takes a few more generations, a good few, but finally, you're all going out there and..."

"Mingling?"

"Exactly!"

"Weird..." Donna digested the information for a moment.

"I still don't get what we're doing though."

"Yeah...well, fast forward on a bit...to the 50th century, and you get the Time Agency! Fairly pointless and potentially dangerous with their arrogance. But basically harmless...they're the first human organisation to figure out time travel...so they go back and forth, buying, selling, interfering, creating havoc...you name it. Skip to the 51st century and they get slightly less harmless...human experiments, corruption, exploitation...anything they can get their hands on. And a certain branch of them reverts back to the old human as supreme race ideology. Suddenly, they don't approve of the mingling...mingling which started with a group of 200 children."

"So they're trying to...interfere?"

"Basically yes...I had hints of it, and then when Clara mentioned a Paradox machine..."

"What's a Paradox machine?"

"It's a machine that halts the consequences of a paradox...you and your six year old self being together, that was a paradox. But in a sense you were protected because the rest of the world was gone haywire, and because that change you made, was meant to be changed! What the Time Agency are doing, well that's huge! They figure that they can stop the children reaching Vira and the whole mixing of species is delayed by another few generations...by which time they can control it. Cancel out whole generations...whole species come to that!"

He paused, looking thoughtful. He also looked angry, Donna realised.

"They haven't created a Paradox machine, whatever they think," he said finally, "only Timelords could do that."

"Is that fact or some sort of Timelord pride?"

"Fact," he said shortly.

"And we have to...?"

"Get on that spaceship," the Doctor said, "travel with them. We won't know who the imposters are, but they'll be there. And they think that Jack is me, that's a bonus, for a while anyway! Fifteen sets of parents travelled with the children...16 now!"

"Didn't all the parents want to go?"

"They couldn't," the Doctor said, "the children were the priority...any adults with them were just for education purposes at the other end."

"Doctor, I'm terrible with children. I never even babysat when I was younger. They do my head in."

"You kidnapped a six year old last time my back was turned!"

She smiled slightly, "yeah...that was _me_. And I had sort of a script to go on. _And_ it only lasted about half an hour."

"Still though...you as a six year old. No easy task."

"Oi!" She swatted him with her hand.

He looked at her seriously, "it's not going to be easy."

"Oh you think?" She raised an eyebrow at him.

"No. Really. It's quite dangerous there. I mean, we'll have the TARDIS and everything but still...it's risky, ok? You need to know that."

"I get it."

"You're sure you want to come?"

"Yeah, 'course I do," she said, "I mean, if you could have left out the babysitting and all, but anyway...what about Clara's friend? We said we'd try and help her."

"Hopefully that'll be part of the process," the Doctor said, "keeping the children safe has to come first. But we'll have them all there...the Time Agency." He made a face, "we're bound to track her down."

"So what do we do? Get one of the kids to pretend we're its parents?"

"Basically, yes!"

"And how do we do that exactly? What child is going to agree to that?"

"Speak for yourself!" the Doctor said, "anyway, there's always one!"

"One what?"

"We'll know when we meet him...or her."

"So...we have to, you know, pretend we're married?"

"Yes," the Doctor said nonchalantly.

"Call each other _dear_ and all that?"

"Yes. And you know what else?"

"What?" Donna asked nervously.

"You can't hit me!"

"Don't count on it," she muttered.


	2. On board

"How are you going to hide this?" Donna reluctantly stepped out of the TARDIS and looked around cautiously. The room they had landed in looked like a giant broom cupboard.

"Perception filter," the Doctor said briskly, lifting out two suitcases and a large, metal box, "besides, no one ever comes in here. Look at the dust!"

"It's a spaceship, though, isn't it? Surely they need all the space they can get!"

"Nah, not this one. It's huge. Lap of luxury!"

"So you say." She looked around apprehensively.

"Alright?" the Doctor asked.

"Yeah...it's a bit claustrophobic."

"What? Wait until you see the size of this place! Titanic proportions...literally in fact!"

"Yeah but...in space."

"Donna, when has that ever bothered you before?"

"It hasn't," she admitted, "but the TARDIS is different. It's like...home." She looked longingly back at the blue police box.

"And it's here, waiting for us. Remember that," the Doctor said, patting her shoulder, "come on, once you get your bearings, you'll be fine!"

They left the room and emerged into a brightly lit hallway. It looked like a posh hotel, Donna thought, feeling completely disorientated.

"Oh! Hello!" A woman walking past stopped to smile at them and then ducked her head looking slightly embarrassed. Donna looked questioningly at her and then realised what the two of them slinking out of a broom cupboard might have looked like. She felt herself going horribly red.

"Hello!" the Doctor seemed oblivious to the awkward moment, "we haven't met yet, have we? I'm the Doctor, this is Donna. And you are?"

"Frida Davis, orientation officer." The woman looked proud as she said this, "have you a child here? Sorry, I can't remember your faces."

"Yes, we have!" The Doctor waved a piece of paper airily at her as Donna searched for a quick topic change, "so! What do think so far?" She indicated the area around them

"Oh...fine! Very successful so far!" Frida said, "you'd never know, would you? And it's all so quiet, after the last few months. I don't think anyone cares where they are, as long as we get some peace!" She smiled but behind the smile, Donna could see that tears weren't far away. She tried to picture what the last few months on earth might have been like. Her distant memories of the parallel world she'd inadvertently created by turning right instead of left gave her a few clues.

"Where is everyone?" the Doctor was asking.

"Dinner," Frida said, "our shift is in ten minutes. I better get going. Well, nice to see you!" She gave them a small wave and walked away.

"Shift?" Donna asked.

The Doctor shrugged, "probably take it in turns. There's a lot of people on board!"

"200 children, yeah, I hadn't forgotten!"

"That's not all," the Doctor told her, "there's compartments of people...the great and good...considered worthy enough to save. And those who bought their way on. They won't want to show their faces around too much."

"So?" Donna looked around with interest, "can we go for a snoop?"

They walked down two flights of stairs ("_stairs on a space-ship"_, Donna exclaimed, unable to voice what she really found funny about that) and into a series of dimly light hallways. Many of the rooms in these corridors housed various machines and pieces of equipment. The workers there seemed totally engrossed and barely looked up as they passed.

At the end of the first corridor they passed, there was a large oak door, which stood out a mile in the otherwise dull hallway. It was carved with ornate patterns and even the handle was a shiny gold. Donna put her hand on it and softly tried to turn it with no avail.

"That'll be well locked," the Doctor said.

"Why? What is it?"

"Well," he looked at it appraisingly, "if I'm not mistaken, this'll hold the treasure!"

"What?"

"You know...artifacts from Earth that they want preserved. What's the betting the _Mona Lisa_ is in there? Or _Sunflowers_ or possibly..."

"No! Really?" She twisted the handle again.

"Donna, it might have an alarm! Come on, if we're going to get caught, it might as well be for something a bit more...adventurous!"

"More adventurous than stealing the _Mona Lisa_?! Come on! Your screwdriver would get us in for a look!"

"No," he said firmly, "tell you what though, I'll give you a guided tour when we land this thing safely. Might even introduce you to the artists later on! Or, come to think of it, Lisa herself. Charming lady!"

"I'll charming you in a minute!" Donna stiffened suddenly, "do you hear voices?"

They stepped softly further along the corridor where the next open door revealed a large control room. The machinery was set in a circular structure in the centre of the room, reminding her slightly 

of the TARDIS control room. Four men in uniform stood around it, staring intently at screens in front of them. Another had hold of a teenage boy and was searching his pockets.

"I'm telling you, I was only looking around," the boy said sullenly.

"You said that the last time," the official said, completing his search, "one more time and you'll be under house arrest for the duration of the journey."

"Like that'll be anything different," the boy muttered. He was tall with dark hair and thin to the point that his body seemed to be all angles and bones. His face was pinched with an expression of detached boredom. Donna, who had been looking forward to seeing 2075 fashions was slightly disappointed with his outfit. Jeans and t-shirt. It didn't seem like much had changed.

"This _is_ the fourth time, sir," one of the other servicemen said to the first official.

"Is that so?" the Official turned back to the boy, "I'm not sure we shouldn't confine you straight away, Peter. You can see what you think about obeying rules after a week in your room!"

The official was now whispering to one of his colleagues. They glanced once or twice at the boy who stared at the ground and ignored them. Donna noticed that his hands shook slightly.

"Sorry! All my fault!" Donna jumped, as the Doctor walked by her and into the room. She followed uncertainly.

"I'm sorry," the Doctor repeated cheerfully, "just took him for a long around. He's been interested in spaceships since he was so high! Always has to see how things work!"

The official glanced sharply at the boy, "this is your father?"

There was a second's pause which, to Donna, seemed to last about an hour. The boy shot them a calculating look then nodded slowly.

"Your name?" the official asked.

"Doctor and Mrs...Jones" the Doctor said, just as Donna started to say "Noble." They glanced at each other and then at the official.

"Sorry," the Doctor said, "the old argument...you know...who takes whose surname! It's gone on a while now! Anyway! This is our son..."

"Peter," the boy said, quickly.

"Well, Doctor Jones," the official said, "none of you are permitted into this section of the aircraft and I must ask that you ensure that your son realises this."

"Yes, of course," the Doctor said, "come along, Peter!"

They walked quickly out of the room, Peter lagging behind.

"So," Donna muttered, "we couldn't settle the surname argument and...we stole Martha's instead?"

"The good professor knows your name," he muttered back and turned around to the boy.

"Peter...I suppose we should introduce ourselves properly!"

"Don't bother," the boy said, "what the hell did you do that for? Do I have to pretend you're my parents for the whole journey? I have parents left behind. At _home_!"

"Yeah...I'm sorry," the Doctor said, "don't want you to feel uncomfortable about this. I'm sure you're very worried about them."

The boy shook his head, "In return for ditching me, they get pride of place in the shelters. And I get...you two." He threw them a sullen, uneasy look.

"We saved you from being put under house arrest!"

"And like I said, what's the difference?"

"Oh come on!" the Doctor said, "it's not like you have to see that much of us. You kids are all living separately from the adults, isn't that right? So...just a quick hello now and again!"

"If they check our records, they'll know you're not my parents!"

"Why should they? You were checked before you get on board. Should be fine...as long as you don't get into trouble and make them check you out."

"Which is always possible," Peter said, suddenly smiling slyly, "I'll need compensation for this, you know. I mean, look at the risk for me. If I get into trouble over this, no one will put any effort into finding me a decent family when we land."

"I promise you...even if you mess it up, we'll help you at the other end," the Doctor said.

"I don't know..." he stroked his chin and looked at them both squarely, "I'll need paying for this. And really, I'm not sure I shouldn't tell someone right now. Who are you two anyway? I haven't seen you before."

"Journalists," the Doctor said, "story of a lifetime, you know."

"Cowards, more like," Peter said, "couldn't take the heat at home."

"Oh for Gods sake!" Donna said, her voice rising on each syllable, "we're up to no good, you're certainly up to no bloody good! So don't play the hypocrite! All we're asking you to do is play along! And if you don't make an effort, you'll have me to answer to!" She drew herself up to full height.

Peter shot her a look but nodded sulkily, "we get caught, you two are on your own," he said.

"Fair enough," the Doctor said, "go on...get back to your quarters before someone else catches you down here." One of the officials had come to the door. He watched them silently.

"And don't forget to eat your greens!" Donna called. She turned to the Doctor when he was out of earshot, "could we not have got someone...nicer? I knew I didn't like kids!"

"Course you do! He'll be fine!"

"I think a dalek would be easier!"

"He'll be fine," the Doctor repeated, "in fact, I think he'll do quite nicely!"

"You too, Doctor Jones," the official called, "back to your own room please."

"You'd think we were two of the _kids_," Donna whispered, "sent to our room with no supper. Hang on...our _room_?"

"Yeah," the Doctor was watching Peter leave, "you know...the doors in the first corridor we were in. That's the bedrooms."

"Yeah...but _room_. Singular!"

"Well, we are married!"

"Don't get any ideas, right?"

"Donna!"

"Hmm...just as well you never sleep."

"Why?"

"We won't have to fight over the bed, will we?"

The bedrooms were like something out of a luxury hotel. Not that she'd been in many but more and more, it was getting harder to believe that they were on a space ship. If you forgot about the lack of windows, that was. Donna half-heartedly unpacked their belongings and scattered them on a large, ornate dressing table. Even the floors were beautifully carpeted. It seemed wrong that amidst what must have been a terrifying time on Earth, every last detail went into making this place something out of a Hello magazine spread.

The Doctor was carefully placing the large, metal box inside the wardrobe.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Sort of a safe," he said, "documents we might need later on. It's great, this," he indicated the box, "anyone tampers with it, I'll know. No matter what part of the ship I'm in."

"Have you any spare? I could do with one for my souvenirs."

"_Souvenirs_? Of our travels?"

"Yeah!"

He frowned at her, "you never said you collected souvenirs? You humans and your keepsakes! What sort of souvenirs? Because the Shadow Proclamation states that..."

"Never mind," she said quickly, "less you know the better then! Wouldn't want you to feel you had to turn me in!"

He grinned at her, "Wilf's allotment is my first guess. Anyway! You got the bed so it's only fair I get the bathroom first!"

Donna stretched out, realising that the lack of windows here was far more noticeable than it had ever been on the TARDIS. She wouldn't admit it for the world but the shared bedroom had come as a slight relief. The whole place gave her the creeps.


	3. Donna's bad day part 1

With a start, Donna opened her eyes, only to see the dimly lit room around her. Her neck and arms felt horribly itchy...maybe the room had been too hot. Over at a large, oak desk, the Doctor sat looking at some papers. He had pulled a comfortable chair up to it and was sitting back in it. He didn't look as if he was really concentrating. She supposed that even if he didn't sleep much, he probably had to rest just the same as anyone. Everywhere was silent.

"How come we're not all floating around?" she asked out loud.

"Gravity controls," the Doctor said, "told you, they've thought of everything." He turned around to her, "bit early for you, isn't it?"

"What time is it?"

"6.20am."

"Jet lag maybe," she said, "we could go out now, couldn't we? Have a look around?"

He shook his head, "no...they'll be on the alert for anyone out of bed. Corridor hopping and all that! Security's pretty tight, I'd say. Still, time agency won't mind that. They'll be right in the thick of it. Here." He handed her her TARDIS key, "you need to wear this around your neck at all times."

"Why?"

"I adjusted the perception filter slightly." He sounded quite proud of himself. "Instead of making us unnoticeable, this will make us fit right in! People will see us...and think we've been here all the time. They sort of...forget they haven't seen us before! Handier than being asked for ID all the time. I've a sneaking suspicion we wouldn't get away with psychic paper for too long!"

"Boys and their toys," Donna commented, taking the key, "ever thinking of making the rooms in the TARDIS a bit more like this?"

"You've got a sofa in the console room! What more do you want?"

Donna smiled. "Give me paper and I'll make you a list. It could do with more of a lived-in look, you know."

"Big, pink double beds don't constitute lived-in! She'd go into melt-down! Anyway this machine can't travel in time!"

"Ok, ok...no need to get insecure! At least consider the carpets!"

"Duly noted and recorded," he muttered, turning back to his papers.

She looked around the room, noticing for the first time, a phone on the far bedside locker. "What do you reckon this is for?" She picked up the receiver.

"Room service," a crisp voice replied.

"Oh...could we get two coffees?" she asked hesitantly.

"Certainly." The receiver was replaced. A few seconds later, a little hatch beside the bedroom door extended inwards. Two steaming cups sat on top.

"Doctor, you've got to admit, that would be..."

"Donna...I really think you need more sleep," he said firmly.

...

The breakfast room was full of people. A series of long tables stretched across the room and the adults all seemed to have their own section at one far end. None of the food was familiar. Donna had gotten used to this on their travels. At first, the Doctor had helpfully explained to her what everything was until she'd had to tell him that sometimes it was really better not to know. Now, he warned her if she was choosing a really bad combination or in danger of poisoning herself and otherwise, she took her chances.

"It's all Viran food," the Doctor said quietly.

Donna instinctively went for a plate of something that looked reassuringly like toast. It tasted more like plain biscuits, except for an odd salty tang. She glanced around the room but the children appeared to be happy enough to sample everything. In fact, they all seemed to be remarkably interested in their food.

"They're not talking," she said, "with this many, you'd think the place would be like...a night-club or something!"

"They don't know what to talk about, I suppose," the Doctor said, "it's a bit of a unique situation for them."

A woman in a navy uniform came up to the adults' table.

"Hello parents!" she said cheerfully, "now, the plan for today! Most of you have completed your initial training so we thought, for this morning, you might all take groups of ten or twelve and give them some general information about Vira. Does that sound ok?"

Most of the parents nodded. Donna glanced sideways at the Doctor.

"Now, we don't want to dwell on the past history of Vira," she said. "Just talk to them about everyday life there. And do please encourage them to talk in Viran at all times during the lesson. At this stage, we really know if anyone's having difficulties with the language."

"Can we speak Viran?" Donna whispered. The Doctor nodded at her, "TARDIS is here, remember," he breathed. She nodded and tried to scratch her arms and shoulders without drawing too much attention to herself. Something on this ship was definitely not agreeing with her. Already, she could see a slight rash forming on her arms.

As waiters cleared the tables, the children were rounded up by adults in the same uniform as the woman who had spoken to them. In small groups, they trailed over towards the parents.

"Oh look, there's Peter!" the Doctor said.

Peter was heading in their direction, looking like he was being dragged to his death. Behind him, a group, all roughly the same age as him, looked curiously at Donna and the Doctor.

"Hi," Peter said unenthusiastically, "we're with you this morning."

"Great!" the Doctor gestured them around the table, "well, what do you want to know?"

"We're not allowed to ask questions," a dark-haired girl said witheringly, "you're supposed to just _tell_ us what _you_ want us to know."

"Well, I'm _telling_ you...you can ask what you want to know!"

For a minute, there was an excruciating silence. Then another girl said hesitantly, "do they really look...just like us? We don't want to insult them or anything first time we meet."

"Yes, they do," the Doctor said, "although...they're pale. Very pale. When you see them, you'll think they look ill at first. Vira's a lot colder than earth...their sun is further away."

"Yeah, we were told to bring all warm clothes," another boy said, "so other than that, they're not different?"

"They have telekinetic skills," the Doctor said.

"What?" Even Peter looked interested in this.

"No one told you that? Yeah...in fact, they'll see you as slightly...disabled at first because you haven't. Fascinating to see."

"Can they teach us to do it?"

"No," the Doctor said gently, "you're a different species. But they're a healthier lot than you! They haven't been pumping their planet full of chemicals! And that will rub off on you!"

"Healthier?" Peter laughed shortly. "They've been at war for centuries, haven't they?"

"How do you know that?" the Doctor asked.

"I heard some of the guards talking when I was out for one of my walks."

"The war is over," the Doctor said, "they were invaded three times by a neighbouring planet. But the last peace treaty has held...you've nothing to worry about there."

"They're more...strict, I heard," a girl said, "we won't be allowed to do anything!"

"They're more conservative than you lot," the Doctor said, "but it's a culture thing and you'll fit into it."

"How soon do we get back to Earth?" Peter asked loudly, "no one tells us that!"

"Well I can't either," the Doctor said. "But...you'll be ok there. They're great people and you'll learn a lot from them. And you'll have knowledge and skills to bring back that will be virtually unknown on Earth."

"Will there be anyone left to bring them to?" the dark-haired girl whispered.

"What's your name?"

"Catherine," she said tearfully.

"Catherine," he repeated. "There will be people to welcome you back. Believe that."

Another girl, younger looking than the others, nudged Donna and smiled at her.

"I really like your clothes," she said shyly, "so old-fashioned. They're brilliant!"

"Thanks," Donna said, trying to look pleased.

"Oh Donna has a slight obsession with the early part of this century," the Doctor said, "I can't get her to update her wardrobe at all!"

When the lesson finished, Peter lingered at the table after the others had left.

"Why'd you talk like that?" he asked.

"Like what?"

"Like you're not going to Vira yourself," he said, "it's all _you'll _do this and _you'll_ do that. Where do you think you'll be?"

"Figure of speech," the Doctor said, "it's a great place, Peter, really. You'll be fine."

"Yeah, yeah." He got up and stalked off.

"Are we going to fool anyone into thinking we're his parents?" Donna asked.

"Yeah...course we will. I'm sure you looked at your parents that way when you were his age!"

"I'm sure there was slightly less hatred in my eyes when I did!" She looked up as a tall brunette in a blue silk dress approached them.

"Louisa Hayes," she said, holding out a hand, "I don't think we've had a chance to talk properly yet. Jones, isn't it?"

"Donna," Donna said, taking her hand.

"My daughter, Catherine enjoyed your lesson," Louisa said, "She says you're a very interesting couple!"

"Oh we're no..." Donna and the Doctor had started to say the same thing at the same time. They both broke off abruptly.

"Fairly interesting as a couple, yes," the Doctor concluded quietly. He put an arm around Donna's shoulders.

"That's our son," Donna added quickly, pointing at Peter who was sitting at a table as far away from them as he could get.

"Oh...yes," Louisa looked at him warily and then turned back to them, "you must join us at dinner this evening, both of you. You will, won't you?"

"Of course! We'd love to! Wouldn't we, dear?" The Doctor smiled winningly at Donna.

"Great!" Louisa turned away, heading back towards her daughter.

"You can let me go now," Donna muttered between gritted teeth. He had made her arms itchy once again.

After the morning session everyone seemed to congregate in large reception rooms on either side of the dining hall. Neatly dressed waiting staff seemed to appear out of nowhere to tidy the tables and from corridors on each side, there were sounds of pans and crockery.

"Mrs Jones!" A plump woman with glossy, blond hair bore down upon them, "come and sit with us!" Donna vaguely recognised her as another of the parents from the breakfast table. Shooting a look at the Doctor who mumbled something and retreated hastily, she allowed herself to be guided to a suite of plush lilac couches where a group of woman sat talking cheerfully. She felt appallingly underdressed around them. Either a dress code had been decided beforehand, she thought, or 2075 was a year of strictly formal dress. She sat down gingerly. Louisa, across the table, waved at her.

"Donna, isn't it?" Her new friend held out a hand. "Lovely to meet you properly!" They all looked completely relaxed, like guests at an ornate garden party.

"How's your son?" Louisa asked, "I hear he's a little unsettled."

"Oh he's fine," Donna said, hoping there was a trace of fondness somewhere in her tone, "making friends...you know."

She had been considering asking them if any of them was experiencing the same itching that she was. It made her feel hot and restless and was driving her crazy. But one look at their clothes and make-up chased the thought away. She was going to kill the Doctor when she next saw him.

"You haven't been in here before," another woman said, regarding her, "it's best to give your son some space, you know. Do your own thing a bit."

"Maybe she doesn't like..." Louisa nodded meaningfully towards a table near the door. Donna looked over and noticed that about 30 people sat around it, some barely able to get close to it. None of them seemed to want to mix with anyone else. On either side of them, two guards stood and nearby, two more stood near the door, which was now locked.

"Who are they?" Donna asked.

"The other _passengers_," Louisa said, with a touch of disdain in her voice, "they can't really socialise at any other time." She lowered her voice, "there's a lot of hostility about the means they used to get on board. It's not as if any of them have _children_. Money, that's how they did it. You don't mind them here, do you, dear? I mean, if it's offends you being here with them, we quite understand."

Donna shook her head slowly.

"We were made to agree after the first day that either they got the room with us for socialising or no one did," a woman beside her said, "so we've had to put up with it. They're not let mix with the children, of course."

Donna looked around at the group of people. There were more men than women and like everyone else she had seen, they were smartly dressed. None of them looked around. They huddled around one table, eyes down, and spoke in low voices to each other.

Their effect on the women was quite obviously a daily ritual. Immediately they began to pick out familiar faces amongst them.

"You wouldn't believe it, would you?" Louisa said quietly, indicating a man with his back to them, "he did so much charity work."

"He could well afford to!"

"Left his family behind..."

"Reassured his people that he'd get them through it and now look at him..."

"And her! On every magazine cover...supposed to be such a good role model!"

"Only elected last year and this is how he repays them!"

Donna half-listened as she watched the uneasy group. It seemed to her that there wasn't a huge amount of difference between them and the group she sat with. They were here as a result of a bargain, weren't they? Only the bargain in their case was their children. Obviously though, there was a real risk of trouble breaking out among them. The guards hadn't troubled to hide their weapons. In the midst of the luxury of the room, it seemed surreal. Who was more likely to cause trouble, she wondered and decided on the women beside her. The other group looked too beaten down to get up to much.

Suddenly she froze. The man in the middle of them. She blinked and shifted slightly, trying to get a better view.

It was Professor Anderson.

It was as if someone had thrown cold water over her. She shrank back in her seat, hoping that she was nowhere in his line of sight. He looked no different to the last time she'd seen him, in Churington. She couldn't see if he had his device on his wrist. It was definitely him.

"Mrs Jones...Donna, are you alright?" Louisa was looked at her, worriedly, "you've gone pale."

"Fine," Donna whispered, "bit tired, that's all. Think I'll..." She trailed off. There was no point trying to leave the room. By the time, she got the guards to open the doors, she'd have the attention of everyone in the room.

"I know," Louisa said, "I'm the same. You're fine for a while and then it hits you..."

"Have a drink, dear," another woman offered, holding a glass of what looked like red wine out to her.

"Thanks," she took the glass and took a long gulp. It wasn't until she'd swallowed that she realised it wasn't wine. In fact, it wasn't anything she'd tasted before. There was fruit juice of some sort there and something strong and vaguely familiar. Never mind, any port in a storm. She drained the glass. At least this afternoon wasn't going to be a waste of time. Just sitting around, she'd found the professor and the Doctor was probably trawling the whole ship trying to do the same thing!

"Better? Here, I'll top you up," the woman smiled at her, "first time I ever tried it, I started looking forward to landing in Vira!" They all laughed.

To be honest, Donna could see why.

She sat very still, allowing the chatter around her to drift over her head. Eventually, guards approached the far table and began to herd the group out of it. She kept her eyes on the professor, wondering if he had seen her. Would he look back? Say something? But he turned and walked with the rest.

"We better change for dinner," Louisa said, smiling around the table.

"Change?" Donna said incredulously, "what can you have to change into that's _dressier_?" She indicated Louisa's dress.

Louisa's smile froze slightly. "We have to keep appearances up," she said tightly, "put on a good show for our children." She regarded Donna. "You could do the same, you know. I realise that your style is a little...vintage but no harm in making an effort. You have your son to think about, you know. They need to see us in control and looking our best."

"I really don't think they're that bothered," Donna said lazily, wondering why she wasn't offended about this over-dressed person criticising her clothes and also why it was suddenly hard to get her tongue around simple words.

"They need normality!"

"Normality! What, this? Spaceship? Asteroid heading for Earth? Pink furniture and designer clothes isn't going to be a lot of help! What I don't get is..." She trailed off suddenly at the sight of hostile faces all around her. For a second she wondered if someone was about to hit her and also if she would be able to move in time to prevent it. Probably not.

But they turned away, as if erasing the moment completely, and began to leave the room in small groups, turning in different directions through the hallway.

Donna stretched out on the couch, wondering if a little sleep wouldn't be such a bad idea. But there was the Doctor to consider. He needed her. God knows what he was getting up to. She dragged herself up, swaying as the room seemed to drift about her. Back to the old pretending to walk in a straight line trick she'd perfected for her mother's benefit years ago. She moved tentatively to the doorway.

In the distance, she could see the backs of the guards and the group making their way to wherever they stayed. At the very least she could find that out and tell the Doctor! Keeping a hand against the wall for support, she walked after them, trying to keep the distance between them.

They headed down a flight of stairs and after giving them a few moments to move on, she clambered down, finding herself in the same hallway as the room with the artwork. The same dark hallway. It felt cold and forbidding and she really needed to sit down. She leaned against the wall, squinting slightly to keep them in her view. Maybe she should leave it now. Go back and tell the Doctor. Go back to the TARDIS ideally and sleep. She couldn't think straight.

But no. He would want her to follow them. She pushed herself upright and continued unsteadily down the dark hallway in their wake.


	4. Double vision

The Doctor smirked slightly as he left the recreation room. Poor Donna...he was sure she had no problem with girly chats but somehow he felt these women were not her type of girls. Still, no harm to be seen doing normal things.

"Hey, wait!" He turned around to see Peter running after him.

"Don't you have something you should be doing?" he asked, indicating the rooms in which most of the kids had trailed into after the session. Peter shrugged.

"Probably. What are you doing?"

"Walking! Just walking!"

"Great! I'll walk with you! I can blame you if I get caught anywhere I shouldn't be!"

The Doctor said nothing. Every time he looked at Peter, he saw himself. It didn't matter to Peter, or any of the other kids, whether or not that asteroid fell, or how severe the damage would be, or even if and when they got back home. Home was changed...had changed for them all the moment this plan was decided. They were displaced. It barely even seemed to matter that he knew how well they would all get on in Vira, and how their futures would change the whole world. In the here and now, they were more homeless and homesick than possibly any other human being had ever been.

"So," he said lightly, "have you made friends here?"

"Yeah, haven't got much choice," Peter said, "seeing as we're sort of stuck together now. The only humans any of us will ever see again are on this ship." His eyes hardened as he looked around.

"No one asked us if we wanted this. Our parents decided."

"They decided because they wanted you safe," the Doctor said gently.

"It's alright for you. You've got your wife. Who do I have?"

"You've got everyone on this ship. That mightn't sound great now but you'll bond as a group. What you're doing...it's going to bring you altogether as a family. You're going to be fine."

"Whatever." Peter walked ahead slightly.

"It'll be ok, Peter, really," he added.

Peter turned around, with a what-do-you-know look, almost like a silent snarl. They walked on in silence for a while until they reached the main hallway with the flights of stairs at either side. Looking around cautiously, the Doctor started to walk downstairs.

"You like to look around here too then," Peter said, breaking the silence. They had almost reached the console rooms from the opposite end to where he and Donna had been the previous evening.

The operation rooms were busier now than they had been then. There were sounds of voices and whirring of machines from every side.

"Probably not the best time," the Doctor muttered, pressing himself against the wall to glance into a room.

"Top of the range machinery," he commented.

"What?"

"Solar, electricity, nuclear power and...is that gophic energy?" He was talking to himself. "No wonder we don't feel the motion!" Over at the far end of the room, a balding man in a navy suit stood with a crew member, their backs to him. Peter looked in over the Doctor's shoulder.

"He's top brass," he whispered. "You don't want to get caught by him!"

"Why, who is he?"

"Professor Anderson," Peter said. "I dunno what he is exactly but the crew spend their days licking his boots! I hear him bossing them around! They're all scared of him. He's not crew himself though...he has his own staff, two of them."

"Anderson!" The Doctor looked in again. It was hard to see in the dim light and the fact that his back was turned if he was anything like Donna's description. He eased the screwdriver out of his pocket and trained it towards the open door.

"What's that?" Peter asked, sounding excited.

"Shh..." He watched the light change and smiled.

"Come on," he gestured back the way they had come.

"You're not a journalist then," Peter said, catching up with him.

"What?"

"I can help you," Peter said, "whatever it is you're doing, let me in on it."

"We're not doing anything, Peter." Yet, he added silently.

"Oh come on! You turn up out of nowhere and you're sneaking around ever since...no one notices you're new...and you know about all this!" He gestured vaguely back towards the control rooms

With a sinking feeling, the Doctor realised that they had met Peter before using the perception filters. Stupid. It was just...Peter. 900 years of time travel and he never failed to forget that meeting someone in their future didn't mean that they would be delighted to see you in their past!

"Peter, it's nothing, ok?"

"So I'm just supposed to cover for you and you won't tell me why?"

"Basically, yes! I will explain it to you, I promise, but not yet, ok?"

Peter stared at him with narrowed eyes for a moment then turned and walked away.

The Doctor sighed softly and followed him at a slower pace. He'd scan the bedroom corridors while things were quiet and then, in all decency, he should really find Donna and rescue her from their fellow passengers.

...

There was a sound of doors unlocking further ahead, past the control rooms. The group had stopped moving. Donna stood uncertainly. The darkness was a bit off-putting. As well as that, the air felt heavy, as if it was full of something almost solid.

"Donna?" A voice hissed at her from the shadows, making her jump. Peter emerged from a doorway.

"What are you doing here? Go back!"

"There's a welcome," he said nonchalantly.

"What are you _doing_?"

"Following you," he came to stand beside her. "Because right now, neither you nor your _husband _look very much like journalists. I mean, come on, when you get back to Earth, no one's going to be reading the papers, are they?"

"Paparazzi," she said drily, "we never give up!"

"He's told me everything," Peter said. "Your husband...I know all about what you're doing."

Donna said nothing. Her head might feel like it was made of cotton wool but she could still recognise a fellow chancer when she saw one.

He rolled his eyes, looking down the hall thoughtfully. "Wouldn't be great for you if we were to be caught right now...say, if I sneezed or something. I'd be locked in my room for a couple of days...but you..."

"Are _you_ trying to threaten _me_?"

"Well..." he looked her up and down. "It's not like you can exactly run right now, can you? From what I could see, walking was a bit of an effort!"

"If you don't get out of my face right now, running will be a problem for _you_ in...!"

"Your chain," he said, throwing her with the subject change, "give me your chain and I'll leave now."

"What?" She put a hand to her neck, to the small gold chain her granddad had given her for her last birthday. "Get off! No way!"

"Fine." He raised an eyebrow at her and moved to stand in the centre of the hall.

"No!" she whispered. Helplessly she waited for him to make a sound. The guard at the very back of the group was only metres away from them.

She signalled desperately to Peter to come back. In the dimness, he smirked at her. She wanted to throttle him.

The guard at the back glanced around. She saw Peter, _she had to_. But she turned back and kept going.

Donna gasped and covered her mouth to try and cover the sound. That guard was the spitting image of...

Peter turned so abruptly that he almost knocked her down as he made a run for the staircase. She wobbled precariously, feeling for the wall. She sank against it, relief making her current state worse. The group was almost out of sight. She struggled upwards and began to feel her way back up the stairs. But each step seemed to grow bigger than the last as she clambered. The itching was back in full force as well. Her skin felt as if it was alive. Half-way up, she stopped. Five minutes rest would do no harm.

...

"Donna? Donna!" The sound was like an irritating insect but it wouldn't go away. She raised her head, wondering why it felt so heavy.

The Doctor was sitting beside her on the stair. She could only imagine what she must look like because he looked like he was having trouble keeping a straight face.

"What did they do to you?" he asked.

"Got me drunk," she muttered, trying to settle her head back down.

"Oh no, you don't!" He put an arm around her, pulling her up. She kept her eyes downwards, wondering when everything was going to stop moving.

"Viran vodka, I suppose?" He still sounded far too amused for her liking. "_And_ you've never learned to sip! That stuff is lethal!"

"Do you have to talk so loud?"

"What were you doing down there anyway?"

"Trying to..." She stopped walking and looked at him excitedly. "I saw the professor! He was in the room with us! He's with the people...the ones you said...got illegibly...I mean...not supposed to be here."

"You can't have," he said, "_I've_ seen the professor...walking around with the crew!"

"Yeah, I did! I was following them back...only I couldn't walk. Peter was there...trying to get us caught."

"Dr Jones?" Donna had a brief and bleary glance at Frida, the official who had met them the previous night, before the Doctor put an arm around and turned her away from her line of sight.

"Yes...sorry...we just took the wrong direction."

"You know passengers are forbidden beyond this point."

"Yes," the Doctor said cheerfully, "and we had no intention of going. Beyond it, that is!"

"If you want...privacy, I suggest you head for your room"

The official continued down the stairs.

"Blimey," the Doctor said, "we're getting quite a reputation!"

Donna groaned and tried to sit down again but she was held firmly upright.

"Donna," the Doctor looked at her sternly. "There's a time and a place to go off by yourself down dark corridors and being barely able to stand isn't one of them!"

"They tried to steal my chain! No, I mean...Peter was..." She swayed and felt the Doctor's hands tighten around her, "tell me about it when you're feeling better," he said gently.

"No, s'ok. They're staying somewhere past the room with the art. I would have gone on further but Jenny saw me."

"_What_?"

"...The guard. Turned around and saw us. At least, I think she did. There's lots of guards and these big guns and the women...thought they were going to shoot me!"

"Ok...save your energy and tell me when you've had a sleep," he said firmly.

...

The next time she opened her eyes, the light hit her like a physical blow.

"Morning!" the Doctor said cheerfully. "Although it's late evening! How are you?"

"Have I been bludgeoned to death?"

"Pretty much! How many times must I tell you that space travel and alcohol don't always mix...especially alien alcohol?!"

"How did they even get alien alcohol?"

"Well...put it together from Viran recipes, like the food, I suppose! Ten times worse than the real thing, probably!"

She pushed herself into a sitting position, keeping a hand on her head and an eye on the bathroom door, just in case. She'd been lying on top of the covers which seemed less embarrassing somehow than if she'd really had to have been put to bed. She opened her mouth to thank him for looking after her but said instead,

"You didn't take my shoes off."

"Donna," he said sternly, "what might have become of me if you'd discovered me removing any of your clothing while you were in a...vulnerable condition?!"

"I really don't think shoes would've counted!" She rubbed her forehead, trying to ease the persistent ache.

"Here," the Doctor pushed a glass into her hand, "remember this? Our famous hang-over cure!"

The first time she'd tasted this stuff, the bottle green colour had put her off for a good twenty minutes. Now, she gulped it back, feeling a joyful relief as the hammers in her head began to subside.

"Trust you to think of bringing a hangover cure," she said.

"Well, you never know! It cures a lot of other things too!"

"Didn't cure my allergy!"

"What are you allergic to?"

She held out one arm, pink and blotchy, "nothing usually."

"Give it a chance...that stuff cures things you wouldn't believe! Anyway, now you've got a clear head, I've been thinking about how we can get to Anderson. Get him on his own."

"You said you saw him? Didn't you? But you can't have...he was in the room with us!"

"Nope," the Doctor said cheerfully, "he was in the control room. Peter pointed him out to me."

"You've never seen him...I have! And what does Peter know?"

"Peter knows the place inside out...it was him, Donna. I did a scan...he had his vortex manipulator. It really was him!"

"I don't understand. It was definitely him _I_ saw." She frowned.

"Do you even remember much about the afternoon?" the Doctor asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"Yeah! Course I do! I saw the professor and went to follow him...they were really heavily guarded, those passengers...and Peter was there at some stage, I think. I don't know..." She trailed off.

"You seemed a bit...confused in some of what you said. What?"

Donna had her hand against her neck.

"My chain is gone!" She rummaged frantically through her clothes, hoping it would drop out on to the bed.

"What, the chain you always wear?"

"Yeah...I never take it off!"

"Maybe it's down the corridor somewhere...might've dropped off." He looked at her thoughtfully. "You mentioned your chain, when I found you."

"Did I? Maybe I dropped it...might still be down there." Her neck felt bare without it and despite the fact that the brief second of irrational panic at finding it gone had dissipated, she felt horribly sad. It wasn't valuable but her granddad had spent a week's pension on it and she loved it. Somehow the fact that it had vanished in a time that he wasn't part of made its loss more acute.

"Sorry," she said. "You were saying..." She felt her pockets, just in case.

"We can get you the very same one, wherever it came from," the Doctor said quietly.

"Not to worry, it'll probably turn up!" She tried to sound casual, "so, you were saying...oh yeah...how to get a man alone when there's two of him!"

Between the constant itching and the afternoon's events, the TARDIS was more and more beginning to seem like Paradise.


	5. Sobering up

Dinner that night was an elaborate affair. The room was dimly lit with tiny metal lights on every table and every person present, including the youngest of the children were dressed as if they'd just stepped off a cat-walk.

"Fancy," the Doctor commented, picking up one of the lights, "solar-powered candles!"

"Solar? On a space-ship!"

"Oh you've harnessed solar-power by now in ways you wouldn't believe! Fascinating, really, the tiny electrical waves, added to a small amount of sodium..."

"Not a Timelord anymore, remember?"

"A bit of science never did anyone any harm!"

They sat at the large table with the other parents. A few of the woman offered Donna rather cool smiles but Louisa waved happily at her, her earlier annoyance apparently forgotten.

"So, any developments?" a voice behind them asked. Peter had sidled up behind up behind them. He winked at Donna.

"You've sobered up then?"

The Doctor looked sternly at him. "It didn't occur to you to help her down there?"

"I did!" Peter spluttered. "I took her arm to help her back and she told me to get lost!"

Donna frowned slightly, trying to remember her earlier conversation with Peter. Something told her that his version of events wasn't quite correct.

"Before that, we were talking and she told me everything," Peter said, pulling up a chair beside the Doctor. "I know what you're doing here."

Now, _that_ sounded familiar.

"He tried that on me too," she said to the Doctor.

"Nice try," the Doctor said.

"Peter!" Frida approached their table. "You need to return to your group. Quickly! You're been taken back to your rooms for a while."

"_Why_?" Peter looked outraged.

"Safety drill," she said but Donna could see that her face was troubled. "Come on, quickly now."

Peter turned and stalked off towards the other tables where the rest of the children were been rounded up, almost like lines on a playground.

"Is everything ok?" the Doctor asked.

"Oh yes, of course! Turbulence, you could say!" Frida smiled brightly and turned to address the parents. "If you could all make your way back to your rooms! We'll make an announcement shortly and normal service will be resumed."

"Bet they said that on the Titanic," Donna muttered.

They followed the line of adults out of the room, lingering to let the majority proceed in front and headed for the staircase. At the bottom, the Doctor took the key from around his neck and pointed the screwdriver at it, then did the same to Donna's.

"No one will notice us now," he said quietly.

As they walked down the hallway, it was obvious that there was a problem. Guards rushed back and forth and loud voices could be heard from inside all of the console rooms. They looked quickly into each room as they passed.

"No sign of him," Donna said. "We should check the rooms with the other passengers. The separate ones."

But before the Doctor could reply, there was a sound like a clap of thunder. Except that it didn't fade away. Three men in uniform ran passed them and into the room nearest to them. And then a smaller figure staggered past.

"Peter! For the love of...!" Looking furious, the Doctor grabbed him.

The ground was shaking.

"In here!" the Doctor pulled Donna and Peter into a doorway. The air felt full of dust and debris even though nothing was actually falling around them.

"What the hell are you doing?" Donna shouted at Peter.

"I'm not staying up there if we're about to crash!" he shouted back.

Gradually the sound began to die away and the shaking stopped. Now the shouts from each of the rooms became audible again.

A guard came rushing passed them into the control room. The Doctor pushed Peter further into the shadows of their corner.

"Private Newman...what can you tell us?" a voice asked.

"I've called in the architect," Private Newman said. His voice sounded nervous.

The Doctor eased himself out of the doorway and towards the large console room. He stood inside the doorway.

"Doctor!" Donna hissed. Someone else was coming towards them. She crouched down beside Peter. The Doctor stood aside slightly but she could see he had complete confidence in his TARDIS key. It was weird knowing that although she could see him, no one else could. Except Peter. She guessed it was because the Doctor had grabbed him and caught his attention. She froze as the approaching figure came into view.

"It's _him_," she mouthed, trying to catch the Doctor's eye. But she could see that he knew. The professor walked past the Doctor and into the room without as much as a glance in his direction. The Doctor stayed where he was, looking into the room.

Donna brushed herself down and glanced at Peter, who looked pale and tense.

"You ok?"

He nodded mutely. There was an awkward silence.

The Doctor rejoined them after a moment. His face was set and expressionless, a look that Donna had learned to fear.

"What's happening?" She asked shakily.

"We didn't hit anything," the Doctor said, "but the co-ordinates look funny. Could have been an energy field...loss of power...overload of power...or interference...and that's the optimistic outlook."

"Interference you caused?" Peter asked.

"No. Why d'you think that?"

"That's what you're doing, isn't it? You're two of those protestors...you're trying to hi-jack this ship and take us back home. The guards are all afraid of this!" He looked at them excitedly. "That's why I want to help you! I agree with you!"

"Oh Peter, it's nothing like that," the Doctor said. "Really. It's not."

Peter said nothing.

Donna looked from one to the other. There was something very similar in each of their expressions.

"So, what now?" she asked, trying to ease the tension.

"Professor Anderson seems to be posing as the ship's architect. He certainly knows everything about it," the Doctor said slowly. "That Newman has a device as well. He's one of them. They've called the crew together for a meeting."

"Do you think this is part of their plan?"

"I think..." the Doctor took out the screwdriver and looked thoughtfully at it. "We'll walk you back to your room, Peter."

"No way!"

"Oh yes...it's non-negotiable."

"I'll tell them you're not my parents!"

A shadow fell across their faces.

"Peter! Not again!" Private Newman stood in front of them. "...of all the times..."

"It's not my fault...it's theirs!"

But the guard didn't even glance at the Doctor or Donna.

"Come on," he said firmly, "back to your room. And you can be prepared to spend quite a while in there."

"It was them!" Peter shot them a murderous look as the guard steered him down the hall.

"Our days are numbered," Donna said, nodding at Peter's retreating back.

"They may well be," the Doctor said. He looked very troubled, "Wait here." He crept slowly towards the next control room. Donna followed. Three guards stood, staring at computer screens in front of them. The Doctor stayed near the doorway, looking over their shoulders. From what Donna could see, it was all figures and diagrams. He glanced back at Donna.

"Are you _ever_ going to obey when I ask you to wait in one place?"

"Does _anyone_ ever obey you when you say that?" she whispered back.

"Fair point...but really, it's not too much to ask that..." Suddenly he stopped, staring intently at one of the screens. Donna could feel his body tense.

"No," he whispered. He was staring as if he couldn't quite believe what he saw. After a moment, he motioned to her and they stole out and back into the hallway.

"What? Tell me!"

"I saw the co-ordinates," the Doctor said slowly. "They're...very different to last night when we were in that console room. Last night, we were much nearer to Vira than we are now."

"Someone's taking us back to Earth?"

"Not quite...the question is _how_..." The Doctor looked around, as if to check for eavesdroppers then pulled Donna back into the doorway. "They've developed some major technology to be able to do this."

"_What_?"

"Look at the crew," he said softly.

Donna looked. Guards and officials were now heading out of the large control room again. None of them looked out of the ordinary. She couldn't see their faces because they were all examining the computer screens but they spoke together in low tones and their body language was...normal, functional, nothing strange from what she could see.

Oh.

"They don't seem bothered at whatever's happened," she whispered back.

"Exactly! Anything else?"

"No?"

"The shade of red on their uniform is slightly brighter than it was earlier on today."

"How am I supposed to notice that? How come you did?"

Despite the situation, the Doctor looked slightly smug.

"They're not the same crew," he whispered, "look." He showed her the screwdriver which was flashing red and buzzing softly.

"Vortex manipulators," he continued. "Earlier today, the only one I could detect was the professor's. Now everyone here has one. They've replaced the crew."

"So...we've been hi-jacked?"

"In a sense."

"And that's what caused the...disturbance."

"Donna," he held her shoulders for a moment. "They've pulled the spaceship back...through space and time...not much time but enough...it's ingenious. Perfect crime...looks just like an accident."

"_Please_ stop talking in code," Donna said through gritted teeth.

He looked at her steadily.

"We've gone back...directly into the path of the asteroid," he said softly.

"_What_?"

"...and they're co-operating beautifully with the timeline, I must say. Crashing into us is going to throw the asteroid off course...so it misses the earth. Don't you see?"

"It's this ship or the Earth?"

"Come on," he took her hand. "We've got to get into the TARDIS."

"Oh yeah! We could get everyone in there, couldn't we? Take them to Vira ourselves. Although...how can we do that without the Time Agency noticing?"

"The Time Agency would be powerless against the TARDIS," the Doctor said scornfully.

"Yeah...and didn't you say they couldn't create a paradox machine?"

"That hasn't been confirmed."

They burst into the small alcove and the Doctor unlocked the TARDIS. Donna felt like throwing her arms around it. She raced in after the Doctor...

...and bumped straight into him.

"_What_?"

It looked like a regular phone box. Without as much as a phone in it.

If she felt as if a limb had just been torn off her, Donna could just about imagine how the Doctor might be feeling.

"It's just been confirmed," he whispered.


	6. Donna's bad day part 2

They stood in silence for a moment, staring at the TARDIS as if by merely looking at it, they could bring it back to normal.

"What's happened?" Donna asked finally.

The Doctor placed a hand against the wall, in an almost tender gesture.

"Their Paradox machine is really active now," he said, "it's cancelling the TARDIS out. No time travel machinery will work while it's running."

"How long have we got before the asteroid..."

"24 hours, maybe a bit more, maybe a bit less."

"I don't understand." Donna was proud of how steady her voice sounded in the face of the conversation they were having. "Whoever's doing this...I mean, if it cancels their equipment out, then they're trapped here too. Do you think they plan on dying?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "People do tend to feel that strongly enough about their causes...mind you, it wouldn't surprise me if they have an escape route somewhere. They've had long enough to plan for this. If we find that, it gives everyone else a chance as well. But..." He rubbed his forehead tiredly. "It's not supposed to happen, not like this."

"Maybe it is...if we save the people and they get to Vira anyway..."

"No...this happens, Donna! I've been to Vira...long after the evacuation. I've heard the stories...this ships lands there! The kids start their lives there! No matter how good their machine is, cancelling all that out is going to have consequences. We've got to find out what's happened to the crew."

"They're more powerful than you thought, aren't they?"

"They're not...they're nothing more than crazy, meddling fools! But their technology. They've harnessed something powerful to do this. Or got some very good technicians! Come on."

They left the room in silence and continued past the bedrooms. Somewhere over their heads, there was a furious hammering sound.

"Let me out! You can't keep me in here!"

"Peter," Donna said. "Should we...go and say something to him?"

"He's safer where he is for the moment," the Doctor said.

"I know but..." Behind the anger of his shouts, there was fear. Donna wished he'd quieten down.

"We'll get him out," the Doctor said, "but not now. He's a loose cannon at the moment." He quickened his pace and Donna followed him down the staircases, not really noticing where they were going until she saw a familiar oak doorway.

"You want to check out the treasure? _Now_? Oh...you think the machine's in here."

"It's as good a hiding place as any," the Doctor said, taking out the screwdriver.

"I thought it didn't do wood."

"I've made a few adjustments since then."

It took a minute but finally the door creaked reluctantly open.

"Hope it's not alarmed," Donna said, stepping cautiously inside.

The only light in the room was a thin shaft from the hallway outside. Donna blinked, trying to make out what was inside. She could see the outlines of frames stacked against a wall and boxes piled on top of each other. Other than that, it looked very bare. She reached out to one of the paintings.

"Don't," the Doctor said sharply, aiming the screwdriver at them. "Every item is alarmed."

"Oh." She withdrew her hand and scratched her arms furiously instead. The past few hours had made her forget about the constant itching but now it seemed to be back with a vengeance. She could feel her face getting hot.

The Doctor walked around the room holding out the screwdriver. After a moment, he sighed.

"I don't think there's anything here that shouldn't be," he said.

"It was worth a try," Donna said, "you'd think they'd dust in here a bit." The air felt full of something heavy. She drew a deep breath and started coughing.

"Since when have you been house-proud?" he asked lightly, bending down to examine some of the boxes.

Donna opened her mouth to respond but suddenly breathing became a priority. Her skin felt hot and tight, as if she was expanding with the effort of trying to breathe. She coughed violently.

"They must think that Virans are fond of silver," the Doctor said, "boxes of the stuff! Never mind, we'll get back and talk to...Donna?"

Donna leaned against the nearest wall, seriously panicking now. Every cell in her body was screaming.

"Can't breathe," she managed to gasp.

"Ok." He knelt beside her. "Donna...look at me. Take a small breath. It's ok...in...out." He rubbed her back.

Donna tried but the coughing started again. Black spots floated in front of her eyes. She clutched at his jacket and struggled to stop herself coughing.

"It's ok...calm down," he said softly. "I'm here. We'll get you some fresh air. Come on, I'll help you."

She felt him grip her shoulder and steer her out of the room. She flinched slightly at the sudden light. The Doctor's eyes widened when he looked at her.

"It's alright Donna...slow down," he said, "take a breath...that's it. And again."

This time, it worked. She gasped with relief, allowing herself to sink to the floor.

"Slower," the Doctor said gently, "one at a time." He sat beside her.

"What's wrong with me?" she panted.

"I thought you were panicking in there," he said, "but now I look at you, you are seriously allergic to something. And it's getting better now you're out here. Think, Donna, is there anything you've ever been allergic to, even as a child?"

"No!" She put up a hand and felt her face. Her skin was hot and still had that stretched feeling. The Doctor rooted around in his pockets and pulled something out.

"Take this," he said, "it has properties that should stop the..."

"Hold on! You want me to take strange tablets you find in your _pockets_?"

"It'll help," he said, "I always carry a little first aid kit when there's humans travelling with me. Delicate little creatures that you are."

"I'll show you delicate in a minute." But she took it obediently.

"That's better," she said after a minute, feeling the heat subside from her skin, "wow, that tablet has something...what?"

The Doctor was staring at her as if he had never seen her before.

"I'm stupid," he said slowly, "I'm just...thick."

"Do you want me to disagree?"

He punched his head softly. "I do know! God, why didn't I think...you said you had no allergies! But I know...I know something you're allergic to! Deadly allergic to!"

"What do you mean?"

"Huon particles, Donna! You were dosed with them, remember?"

"I'm not likely to forget that, am I? Unless someone _wipes my mind_, of course!" She looked sternly at him.

"You were dosed with them once...and that left you with an allergy to them!"

"How do you know?"

"It's a fact...a fact of biology! Like not getting chicken pox twice! Mind you, in my case...never mind that now! I never thought to tell you...they're not the sort of thing we're likely to encounter too often."

"But you said the TARDIS has them!"

"Yeah...but the TARDIS protects you from them."

"Oh." She thought for a moment. "So is that what they're using to build the machine?"

"Yes! They've found a way to harness the power inside the particles. You've seen that done before."

"So...the machine _is_ in there?" She pointed back into the room.

"No, not now. I'd have detected it. But it must have been here once to make you react like that. This is bad."

"Why?"

"Because to activate the particles, they have to use someone. Someone on this ship is being poisoned with them."

"But we can track it now!" Donna grabbed his arm. "I'll know where it is when we're near it!"

"No, Donna, definitely not."

"But..."

"You're allergic...very allergic. You nearly stopped breathing because you were somewhere it had once been. Imagine what it would do to you to be in the same room."

"But if I keep the tablets with me..."

"The tablets only worked because your symptoms were fairly minor."

"_Fairly minor_!"

"Yes. That was minor. So, take this seriously. If it starts to happen again, wherever you are, get yourself as far away as you can. In fact, from now on, you're going to stay in the main part of the ship, ok?"

"But..."

"Donna...I need to concentrate to get us all out of here. And if I'm wondering where you've gone or if you're anywhere near that thing, I can't. Ok?"

She nodded.

"Promise? Because I'd rather see you drinking Viran Vodka with the Time Agency than creeping around these corridors!"

They found their way back to the reception areas where parents and children were sitting around in small, worried groups. Guards stood at every entrance but none of them were stopping anyone from entering or leaving. They smiled at the passengers and murmured repeated reassurances that everything was ok and that they had just been slowed down for a while. No one seemed particularly convinced.

"Are they time agents?" she asked.

"They all are. There's no staff on this ship anymore."

"This is most...normal I've seen any of _them_," Donna said, spotting Louisa with her arms around her daughter as they sat together on a couch.

"It's all been a bit of an illusion so far," the Doctor commented. "Best of everything. Soft furnishings. Drink. Gourmet food. Suddenly reality hits. This is the unknown. Nothing can prepare you for that."

"No." Donna sat on a couch, feeling like she was invading a private moment between the parents and children. So far, they had all appeared to be so separated.

"I'm going to have a look around while this still works." The Doctor indicated his TARDIS key. "When things hot up, they'll be on the alert and we won't get away with it." Remembering that she was still invisible, technically speaking, Donna removed hers and put it in her pocket.

"You want me to stay here," she said flatly.

"Yes, please."

"Well, don't be too long." She looked worriedly at him as he left the room then got up and walked over to Louisa and Catherine. She sat down uncertainly beside them, unsure of whether they wanted company but Catherine offered her a tearful smile.

"Donna." Louisa took her hand. "No one seems to know what's happening. Do you think there's anything serious? I can't find of the staff we know. I suppose they're all busy."

"I'm sure everything's fine," Donna said. "They'd be going through emergency procedures otherwise, wouldn't they?"

"I suppose so." Louisa took a long sip of her drink. "Would you like a drink?"

"No thanks," Donna said quickly.

"Every so often, something reminds you...how far we are from home. Do you feel that?" Louisa asked quietly.

"Yeah," Donna nodded, "and then something reminds me of home. Even something stupid like...drinking and gossiping...or people flirting...you'll always find something familiar." She tried to smile reassuringly.

"Is Peter ok?" Catherine asked. "I heard he was locked in his room."

"Yeah...he's pretty angry," Donna said, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. "I suppose I should check on him."

"They'll have to let him out...just insist on it," Catherine said. "Everyone's scared right now. It must be horrible for him being on his own. Do you want me to come with you?"

"No...stay with your mom. I'll go up to him," Donna said. The Doctor had told her to stay put but the bedroom halls were still public places. She'd just see if he was ok and come straight back.

Peter had stopped banging and shouting. The whole corridor was silent. She walked in the general direction of the noise they'd heard earlier, calling softly at each door.

"Peter?"

Half-way down, there was a reply.

"Who's that?"

"Donna."

"Can you get me out?"

"I don't think so. Not on my own anyway. But I'll try."

"Do more than try!" His voice sounded edgy. Donna looked around for inspiration and finding none, she ran back to the staircase and indicated to the nearest guard. Chances are they wouldn't know that Peter was being punished.

"My son's locked in his room. Bit of a problem with the lock."

The guard looked at her for a moment then sighed and followed her up. She tried to watch his sleeve as she led him to Peter's room. But if he was wearing a device, it was out of sight. When they reached the door, he inserted a card and the door opened. Wordlessly, the guard walked away.

"Took you long enough!" Peter walked out slowly. His face was pale and tense.

"You're welcome," Donna retorted.

"What's going on? What happened?"

"Nothing...we don't know. It's all over now, whatever it was." She tried to stop herself babbling.

"You don't look as if it was nothing."

"We're all on edge, right? No big deal!"

"No?" Peter looked around wildly. "I hate this place. No one tells me what's going on, or what they're really up to. None of you care! We could all die and you'd just think we were nothing but a fascinating experiment!"

"That's not true, Peter. The Doctor and me, we're trying to help you. We really are. Look, I don't have time to tell you properly. We've got to go back down. But it's going to be..."

"Don't say that!" His breathing was harsh and loud and come to think to it, Donna realised that her own wasn't much better. The air was thick, as if the atmosphere itself was holding its breath. She was sure she could hear approaching footsteps.

"You're scared," she said quietly, regarding him.

"What?"

"This ship scares you. I thought it was more, where you're going to. But it's not, is it? That's why you can't stay in one place for more than a few minutes."

"Shut up!"

"I feel the same," she said softly.

Peter didn't reply. His eyes were wild. He thrust a hand at her and for a moment she thought he was about to hit her. But something landed at her feet.

Her chain.

His face twisted into a harsh, ugly smile as she picked it up silently.

"You're all too drunk and self-satisfied to notice anything!"

She took a shaky breath, trying to quash the hundred statements she really wanted to make.

"Come on," she said uncertainly, "we'll go down to the others. There's a better atmosphere down there."

"Just...leave it! Sod off and leave me alone! I didn't ask you to come!"

"Peter..."

"I'm warning you..."

"Just come with me! It's not safe on your own!"

"What's going on here?" The guard had come to the end of the hall and stood watching them.

"Nothing," Donna said, "we're just a bit...unsettled."

"Well, you and your son need to come down now and sit with the other passengers. Follow me, please. Come on, son." He looked firmly at Peter. "Follow your mother."

Donna looked at Peter who looked like he was going to explode.

"Come on, don't make things worse for yourself," she whispered, beginning to walk. His voice stopped her in her tracks.

"She's _not_ my mother! She's not anyone's mother!"

...

The jolt from his words made her drop the chain. Every second felt like minutes. As if in slow motion, the guard turned back to face them.

"What do you mean?"

"It's a joke," Donna said quickly. "Peter, now's not the time for your messing!"

But Peter's face was expressionless now, as if he'd jumped into a long-feared abyss.

"She and her husband...they've made me pretend that they're my parents," he said flatly. "I don't know what they're doing but I want them kept the hell away from me."

The guard walked swiftly up the hall to them, one finger pressed to his wrist as he walked.

"You better be telling the truth, son."

Donna couldn't move. She watched as the guard stared at them. She heard footsteps running up the staircase. Downstairs somewhere, there was a sound of laughter. Someone had put music on.

"Where's your husband?" the guard asked her.

"I'm on my own," Donna said.

The footsteps turned into shadows. The shadows turned into men.

"Ah yes," Professor Anderson said, "I thought I'd be meeting you before too long."

"This boy says..." the guard began.

"It doesn't matter," the professor replied curtly, "I know who she is." There were two guards on either side of him and nothing but wall at the other end of the corridor. Nowhere to run to. And as much as she tried to tell herself it wasn't happening, her breath was starting to catch again.

"Where is the Doctor?" the professor asked her.

"I'm on my own," Donna repeated, but it came out as more of a gasp.

"You seem unwell," he noted coldly.

A guard behind him whispered something and he turned slightly to reply. Donna reached into her pocket for the key.

"Follow me please," Professor Anderson said and turned to Peter. "Back to your room please. I shall speak to you later."

Donna made as if to take a step, trying to keep her face neutral. Then as quickly as she could, she held her hand out behind her back. For an agonising second, nothing happened. Then she felt his hand reach out and take the key from her.

"Around your neck!" she hissed in his general direction. Vaguely she wondered if she had something terminal. She should murder the little sod and here she was, giving him possibly the only weapon she had. He wouldn't make eye contact with her.

"Now, please!"

Her skin felt tighter now. Every breath was an effort. The nearer she got to them... Maybe it was just fear. The machine couldn't be here.

They stood back as she reached them, the professor indicating that she walk ahead of them. The guards lowered their heads. What had she to lose?

Donna tried to summon every ounce of adrenaline she had as she made a run for it. _Don't think. Don't think._ She repeated the words in her head as she came to the top of the staircase. There was commotion behind her.

"Get down! He has a gun!" It was Peter's voice.

She spun around. Peter was running behind them, shouting to her. And beside the professor, there was a quick glimpse...the guard on his right. The guard on his right who put a hand out, stilling the movement of the gun, whispering something into the professor's ear. He shook her off. Donna and she locked eyes, just for a second. Donna covered her mouth to keep herself from crying out.

_Jenny?_

_It couldn't be..._

Shock and sudden confusion, more than anything, made her hesitate and that, in turn, caused her to stumble. She made an effort to regain her footing. It seemed to her that everyone froze around her. There was an endless sense of falling downwards, of anticipating the ground, the never-ending staircase...and the aching relief of blackness and blankness.


	7. The cavalry

Shaking, Peter pulled the key around his neck. The terrible fog in his head was beginning to build up again, threatening to pull him under with it. As the key touched his skin, there was a strange sensation, like cold water being dripped down his back slowly. No one missed him. No one looked for him. Maybe they had just assumed that he had run back into his room.

No one ever missed him. And suddenly this was good.

When Donna started to run, everything seemed to happen in slow motion. He felt as if he was standing far, far away observing and the sight of the gun tugged him back with an almost physical pain. The professor held it up, aimed straight for her back as she tried to get away from them.

And then she fell. The thumps of her body on the stairs seemed to go on forever.

The terrible thing he had been dreading since coming on board, no, long before that, since the first whispers that he might be one of the precious chosen, had finally happened. And in the end, he had caused it.

They were gathered around her now at the bottom of the stairs. One of them ran to close the door of the dining hall, shielding them all from the view of the other passengers. For a terrible second, he thought that the professor was going to shoot her while he stood over her. The guard beside him spoke quietly to him. They appeared to be arguing.

"Take her to her room," the professor said eventually. "I want two guards posted at the door. When he arrives, summon me at once. I want that boy questioned right away."

Two guards picked Donna up and carried her slowly back up the stairs and along the hallway. Peter crept after them, keeping a hand over his mouth in case they could hear his ragged breathing. They entered, leaving the female guard outside. She looked straight at Peter and for a moment he thought he would faint with fear.

_She could see him._

Or maybe not. Maybe she was just looking in his direction. He froze, watching her. But she didn't react. She held the door open as the two guards came of the room and then...continued to hold it, as if she was waiting for him to enter before locking the door. It was weird. _I'm invisible_, he repeated desperately to himself. _She can't see me. It's just coincidence._ He looked straight ahead and entered the room.

They had left her lying on the bed. For a moment, he was afraid to go too close, terrified of what he might see. He realised that his breathing was almost as jagged as hers had been.

_I feel the same_, she had told him.

"Jenny," a thin voice whispered from the bed. He forced himself to approach it.

"Donna. It's me. Peter."

She gazed at him blearily. He wasn't sure if she could see him.

"I'll get the Doctor," he said shakily. "You'll be fine. Don't worry."

"Tell him." She took a breath and he was relieved to hear that her breathing seemed slightly easier. "Tell him...Jenny. Tell him about Jenny."

Her eyes closed again.

"Donna! Wake up! Do you have a phone? Do you have the Doctor's number?" But there was no response. He looked desperately around the room, barely sure what he wanted to find. The Doctor. Was he a doctor? If he was, there might be medical supplies. She had a cut on her head. He ran to the small bathroom and emerged with a wet face cloth for her forehead.

Then he checked the wardrobe. The Doctor and Donna clearly didn't worry too much about keeping their clothes neat. There was nothing inside apart from a metal box. He took it out and rattled it, unsure of what first aid supplies would actually sound like. He slid a fingernail into the catch, wondering if he could force it.

There was a sound at the door, like a low buzzing. Clutching the box, he backed away from it towards the bed. The door opened quietly.

"Nice try, Peter, once again!" At first there was only the voice. Peter jumped about a mile. The Doctor appeared in front of him, removing the key from around his neck as he did.

Peter opened his mouth but nothing came out. His heart seemed to be about to jump out of him and through the ceiling. He nodded at the bed and looked away.

"Donna..." The Doctor's voice was quiet, like a whisper. "What happened?"

"Not very gallant, was it?" A cool voice spoke from the doorway. "Leaving her alone? Bringing her here in the first place?" The Professor came all the way into the room and regarded the Doctor. Behind him, Peter eased the box on to the ground. He started to get up but the Doctor's hand signalled at him behind his back to stay put.

"We haven't been introduced," the Professor said. "I realise that you, like your unfortunate friend here, are working with the elusive Doctor."

"She needs medical attention," the Doctor said. His voice was like ice.

"Yes, she does, doesn't she?" the Professor said in a conversational tone, "and in order to get it, I'll need a few details from you. Name?"

"Captain Jack Harkness," the Doctor said.

"You were a time agent." The Doctor nodded.

"The Doctor and Clara Stokes. Where are they?"

The Doctor said nothing.

"Come now, Captain," the professor said. "Your friend needs help. You said so yourself." As if to prove his point, Donna took a shuddering breath.

Still the Doctor remained silent.

"Fine," the Professor concluded. He turned towards the door and made a signal. Four guards walked in. Two walked briskly over to Donna.

"Leave her alone," the Doctor said harshly.

"So you _would_ like to talk to me?"

No reply.

"We'll see how you feel in another while, shall we? I would say that she cannot afford to wait too long. But then again, I'm not a _Doctor_." The two guards were tying Donna up. The other two manhandled the Doctor roughly, forcing him backwards on to the floor. They pulled the ropes so hard it made Peter wince. He shut his eyes. Maybe, there was a slim chance, somewhere, that he might still wake up and this whole ship would be a nightmare. The darkness behind his eyes was such a relief that he almost envied Donna her unconscious state.

"Peter." He had no idea how long it had been since the guards left. Minutes...maybe longer. The Doctor's voice was low and insistent.

"Peter, come on! There's a device in my pocket...like a screwdriver. Come and get it." Shaking, Peter crawled towards him, looking at the door as he did. He reached into the Doctor's breast pocket and felt cold metal. He held it out dumbly.

"Press that button...hold it towards the rope. Not my hand! Blimey...what are you trying to do!"

A thin shaft of blue light almost made him drop the device. The ropes around the Doctor's wrists disintegrated. He took the device from Peter and pointed it at his ankles.

"What is it?" Peter whispered. Nothing would ever surprise him again. Nothing.

"Never mind that now." The Doctor jumped up and leaned over Donna.

"She said..." Peter's voice shook with the effort to maintain what composure he had left. "She was talking about someone called Jenny. I don't know who she meant."

"She's concussed," the Doctor said shortly, "Jenny's dead."

"Her breathing was really bad even before she fell..." He trailed off at the look of outrage on the Doctor's face as he examined Donna. He was no longer sure if he was safer inside this room or outside of it.

"So...what is your real name?" he ventured to ask. But there was no reply.

_Seriously, there's an outrageous amount of running involved._

"Jenny?" It was a struggle to speak. And it certainly seemed wise not to open her eyes.

"Donna! Donna, wake up!"

A hand held hers and shook it gently.

"Doctor?"

"I'm here." There was silence for a moment. With effort, she opened her eyes and tried to focus on something. For the first second, all she saw was pink.

"Where are we?"

"Our room. You're safe."

Her vision was clearing. She was lying on the bed and he sat beside her. She turned towards the other figure beside the wardrobe. Peter. His face looked tear-stained or maybe it was just that her vision was blurred. The Doctor was looking at her as if he didn't quite know where to begin. Probably fair enough.

"Where does it hurt?" he asked.

"It'd be easier to tell you where it doesn't hurt." Gingerly, she moved her arms and ankles, trying to decide if anything was broken.

"I'm tied up?" She tried to sit up.

"Settle down...there, the ropes are gone. You're safe."

Her head ached and there was a dull ache in her side. She closed her eyes again.

"Was I shot?" Her voice sounded hazy to her own ears.

"No...you fell down the stairs," Peter said. "I reckon you'd have got away if he didn't have a gun. I didn't know they carried them..." His voice went quiet. "I didn't know they'd hurt you."

"What did you think they'd do...invite me for a drink?"

"No...just lock you up in your room...see how you liked it. I didn't think. I lost it."

"That's an understatement, mate." She coughed harshly and turned her head back towards the Doctor.

"They've found us."

"If you'd have just told me something, anything about what you were doing! For all I knew you were..." The Doctor held up a hand to silence Peter.

"You stay quiet for now, ok?" His voice was cold. He turned back to Donna.

"This might hurt a little...tell me if it does."

"Doesn't matter," Donna murmured, closing her eyes.

"No...no sleeping just yet!" He nudged her gently, "I'll have to start singing if you can't keep awake!"

"Did I hit my head?"

"Yeah...nothing to worry about. Well, besides the headache I'm sure you have."

"Does that..." She bit her lip. "Does it affect my memory?"

"What?"

There was strange panic building up inside her now. It even drove any last traces of sleepiness from her.

"My memories...have I forgotten anything?" She tried to sit up.

"Donna...you're fine," the Doctor caught hold of her shoulders and eased her back against the pillows. "Why would you think that?"

"I have! Something important!"

"Calm down! Honestly. You're alright. Completely alright." He squeezed her hand.

"I don't know...I just thought...my memories. What if they go again?" She looked pleadingly at him and saw the understanding in his eyes.

"They won't," he said gently, "I've scanned you. Nothing's wrong, ok? Nothing can take your memories away now."

"Why would she think that?" Peter asked sharply.

"It happened to her once before," the Doctor said quietly, turning around and silencing him with a look.

"Who _are_ you?" Peter asked, sounding desperate.

...

It felt like an hour had passed, though it could just as easily have been ten. No one had come near the room.

"Did you find anything?" Donna asked.

"It's what I didn't find that interested me," the Doctor said. "The crew. Absolutely not on board anymore. Which means, there's a way off this ship. Transmat maybe or a teleport device that bypasses the time circuits."

Donna got up and walked shakily across the room, marvelling at the fact that she was able to move in a pain free manner. She felt fragile and tired but that was marvellous compared to, well, the whole day really. She smiled at the Doctor, noticing that in the dim light that his face was tired and strained.

"Sorry," she said.

"What?"

"Sorry...for everything. Getting drunk, being allergic to everything, falling down stairs. I was a bit useless today."

"Well, no one ever said marriage would be easy!"

She nudged him.

"Donna...none of that was your fault. All that matters is that you're ok. Besides, what you did achieve today outweighs all that!"

"What? Getting concussed?"

But the Doctor nodded at Peter who was curled up in the armchair by the desk. Even asleep, he looked angry, but she supposed it was a marvel he was sleeping at all.

"Tell you later. Come and sit down. I may be a brilliant doctor but concussion still needs time and rest!"

Donna sat back on the bed beside him and glanced at Peter.

"We should send him back to his room. No, we can't, can we? They'll be looking for him. We've got him into trouble. Mind you, nothing he doesn't _deserve_."

"He was, and is, already in trouble, believe me."

"Wait! Why are we talking about _resting_ when we're about to crash into an asteroid?! At least..." She looked cautiously at the door. "Do you hear something?"

"Yes..." The Doctor looked across the room.

"Peter!" Peter jumped up, looking around wildly.

"Go into the bathroom and stay quiet...quiet as you can, ok? You're wearing the key?"

Peter nodded and ran into the small bathroom. The Doctor sat up and wrapped the ropes back around Donna's ankles and his own. Awkwardly, Donna tried to wrap the rest around her wrists. She felt her heart thudding violently throughout her whole body.

"It's ok," the Doctor whispered. "I won't let anything happen to you. Keep your eyes closed."

The door was unlocked and Donna heard footsteps cross the room and approach the bed. What if the ropes were checked? She had never felt so helpless. The temptation to open her eyes and face down whoever was there was almost unbearable.

"How much longer are you going to keep us like this?" she heard the Doctor say. "We haven't done anything! Look, I have papers! We've done nothing wrong! It's a complete misunderstanding."

There was silence.

Donna heard the footsteps walk about the room. She felt the Doctor's fingers briefly touch her own.

Then the footsteps walked away from her again. The door clicked shut. They lay in silence for another minute. She felt the Doctor sit up.

"Who was it?"

"The Professor."

Peter crept out from the bathroom and curled up in the chair again, not saying a word. She hoped he wasn't in shock or anything. She looked at the Doctor, frowning.

"What's the point in trying to persuade him we're innocent? He knows us...well, me anyway."

"Ah." The Doctor gathered up the ropes once more. "This one doesn't. And I didn't want him to know anymore than he needed to."

"I don't get you."

"We've got to get out here," the Doctor said. "Time's running out. And not only for this ship. With the amount of messing around with time that's going on, we'll be lucky if that doesn't do us in before the asteroid does."

"The machine, you mean?"

"Yeah...and the fact that we've seen the professor separately at the same time."

"You didn't believe me!"

"No...but now I do."

"Why?"

"Because..." the Doctor seemed to spin the words out. "While he was chasing you down those stairs, I was watching him in the console room. _And_, the professor who visited us just now was ever so slightly younger looking than the one who tried to shoot you."

"What?"

"Yes...don't you see what he's doing?"

"Cloning himself?"

"No! Time travelling! See? The professor who tied us up...he's the real one, so to speak, in the here and now. Well, apart from coming from the 51st century of course! The others are coming from there too but they're coming from further back...possibly from while he was building the ship!"

"_Building_ the ship?"

"Yes! Didn't I say? He _is_ the architect, not posing at all! He came from his own time...joined the salvation team in 2075 and they took him on. And while he was doing it, he travelled forward to see the finished product! Walked around with his team, posed as a passenger when he needed to, saw the whole lot! Best blueprint there is!"

But that's..."

"A paradox! I know! Whatever and wherever the machine is, it's been here from the very beginning. So has the person he's dosing with huon particles. He knew you in Churington because he had already been to this room and seen you tied up! He could know everything that's going to happen from here on in." The Doctor looked very troubled. "It doesn't explain why he thinks Jack is me. You'd have thought after seeing me just now, he'd guess..."

"So what are we going to do?"

They were interrupted by a sharp sound outside. Peter leapt up again.

"That's a gun!"

"Someone's coming." The Doctor slipped the screwdriver into his sleeve and flung the ropes over them again. There was no time to do it properly. Without thinking, she moved closer to him. There was a sound at the door, a slight buzzing.

The door was kicked open and something landed on the floor in front of the bed with a loud thump. The door was slammed shut again. Peter sat up and sprang to his feet, his face getting whiter by the second.

"What the...Oh God, he looks dead!"

There was a loud gasp and a shuffle as Captain Jack Harkness struggled upright. He looked at Donna and the Doctor and raised an eyebrow.

"Are you two in bed together?"


	8. At cross purposes

"Jack! Good to see you!" the Doctor said warmly as Jack looked around the room. His eyes fell on Peter who was staring at him with a mixture of shock and terror.

"Who's that?" Jack asked sharply.

"Their son," Peter said quickly.

Jack turned back to the Doctor and Donna.

"You guys were only pretending to be married, right? I have to say, you've taken it very seriously. In fact..."

"Yes, thanks Jack," the Doctor said. "Peter, it's ok. He's here to help..."

"He can see me," Peter said, indicating his key.

"We Time Agents laugh in the face of perception filters," Jack said proudly. "Or at least in my day, we did. That lot out there didn't turn a hair when we walked right past them! Standards have obviously slipped. I almost made it until the end of the hallway. I think I sneezed...this air..." He was interrupted by a timid knock on the door. Jack strode over to the door and pointed a metal pin at it. It swung open and he pulled the newcomer into the room with a loud sigh.

"Clara!" The Doctor shook her hand warmly. "Good to see you!"

"She's not meant to be here," Jack said. "She grabbed me just as I was teleporting and wouldn't let go. We separated so that if one of us got caught, help would be on hand. I've got to admit, Clara, I was kind of expecting you to be the one to get caught!"

Clara smirked slightly. She looked more self-assured than she had the last time they had seen her, Donna observed. Besides updating her wardrobe, with what looked like Martha's influence (the jacket looked great on her), she seemed more at home, less jittery than she had seemed the last time she saw her.

"I had to come," she said simply. "If we can make this ok, it sort of justifies the last seven years of my life!"

The Doctor glanced sympathetically at her.

"I have to say also," Jack continued, "in my day, we didn't strut around corridors and shoot people on sight. Are the passengers safe?"

"For now. Did you notice our exact position, by any chance? And how did you get on here? Nothing's working. Even the TARDIS."

"Seriously?" Jack's smile faded. He pointed to his wrist device. "I guess it got us here because we set it to arrive yesterday _when we didn't hear from you_. It took a while though...and having a stowaway clinging to me didn't help!"

"Is it working anymore?" the Doctor asked.

Jack pressed a button and held it to his face.

"Nope. Dead as a doornail."

"Figures." The Doctor got up and paced the room.

"Donna, no offense but you've looked healthier. Like right after regenerating!" Jack said, sitting beside her. "Luxury space travel not suiting you?"

"What did you mean when you didn't hear from us? How were we supposed to keep in touch?"

Jack looked a bit sheepish.

"Psychic paper," he said finally, as if admitting to a terrible misdemeanour.

Donna looked at the Doctor. "Psychic paper? You two were writing notes to each other on psychic paper! Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"Why?"

"Because it's made my day! The image of you two writing little notes to each other!"

"They weren't little notes. They were _updates_," the Doctor said stiffly.

"All this technology and you two want to be pen pals! Oh that's brilliant!"

"Right," Jack said. "Moving on! If I'm supposed to be the Doctor, maybe I should be out there doing _Doctor_ things?"

"We have to find the exit," the Doctor said. "That's the main thing. We need a way to get everyone off this ship. And right now, the professor will be on the way to identify your body so we've got to get out of here. And there's something else. The machine. We've got to find out who they've been giving the Huon particles to."

"Huon particles?" Jack whistled softly. "So the machine is a person?"

"Kind of, yeah. And they won't survive much longer if they've been dosed all this time."

"And if they die, the...hold on, this is bad. If they die, all this time stuff will go to pieces."

"Basically, yes," the Doctor said. "We're going to need someone else to take over. Take the particles...hold the machine together while we sort out the Time Agency. I can do that."

Donna raised her head sharply.

"It's ok," he said to her, "it doesn't affect me as much as it would a human."

"No," Jack said, "but we don't need to be worrying about you. I'll take the particles. It's not like that they can do much damage to me."

"What about the TARDIS?" Donna asked. "How can we get it working?"

For a moment, neither man replied. The Doctor's face was expressionless.

"We can't, until we disable the paradox machine," he said finally.

"And we can't do that," Jack said slowly, "until we get the people out of here and disable the time agents."

"And let's not forget the asteroid," Donna finished. Suddenly she remembered Clara's colleague and their promise to try and help her. She glanced at the other woman. Clara's face was strained and sad but she said nothing. Probably she thought, and Donna couldn't disagree, that they had enough to be going in with for the time being.

...

They left the room in groups, Jack and the Doctor first and Donna sandwiched between Clara and Peter and their various perception filters. The ship was shuddering constantly now and it was difficult to know it was actually moving or not. Lights flicked on and off. The hall was empty of guards.

"It's probably taking every last time agent to keep this thing upright," the Doctor muttered darkly.

In the hallway, it was clear to see that normal service had been resumed. The children sat at tables chatting and listening to music. In the room beyond, the Doctor had a brief glimpse of the adults clinking glasses and talking quietly amongst themselves. A few remained with their children. Louisa and Catherine still sat together silently.

"It kind of reminds me of the end of the universe," Jack mused. "All those people giving it their all to survive."

"Yeah," the Doctor stood and watched them for a moment. "Families. Even in the midst of terrible crisis, it's the most important thing." His face clouded over slightly and Jack could no longer tell if he spoke to him or to himself.

"Donna thought she saw Jenny."

"Really?" Jack glanced back at Clara. "You think she's on this ship?"

"No!" Now the Doctor sounded angry. "What are you talking about? Jenny's dead! We saw her die."

"What? When? Why haven't you told Clara?"

"Why would I tell Clara? She didn't know..." The Doctor looked at Jack, frowning. "What are you on about?"

Jack was looking at the Doctor with a mixture of bafflement and concern.

"Doctor...what you do mean, Donna saw her?"

"She was concussed. Dreaming."

"Ok, I'm lost." Jack looked at him intently.

The Doctor shook his head slightly.

"I get the feeling that we're talking about different Jennys. Who's yours?"

"Clara's colleague.

When the Doctor didn't reply, Jack asked quietly,

"And yours?"

...

"I can't believe I'm here," Clara said, staring around the brightly lit hallway.

"You researched this, didn't you, in your own time?" Donna asked.

"Night and day...we just knew they had plans for this ship," Clara said. She looked at Peter who walked silently beside them. "You're one of the evacuees?"

Donna shot her a warning look but Peter merely nodded. He looked slightly shell-shocked. Come to think of it, he had said very little for the past few hours. Donna nudged him.

"You ok?"

He glanced up, met her eyes and shrugged. "Are you?"

"Yeah."

"You're taking all this very well all of a sudden," she said to him suspiciously. "We could just as easily be the enemy, you know."

"You could," he said and paused. "But I haven't seen any of you try and shoot an unarmed woman in the back." Great. She rolled her eyes. His first positive comment about them was the fact that they didn't seem to want to shoot anyone.

They reached the small closet which housed the TARDIS.

"Stay there," the Doctor said, indicating the TARDIS. "If there's any sign of life from her at all, get in and wait."

"Ok," Donna nodded. She wondered for a moment if Peter would protest at being left behind as the two men disappeared down the hallway but he was staring at the TARDIS and seemed unaware of anything else. Clara was looking disgruntled.

"This is..._ancient_," Peter concluded, "like your clothes, the way you talk, everything. That's the other reason I trust you, by the way. Sort of. Because real terrorists would do all they could to blend in. You lot are like something from..."

"Yeah...and you could have figured all that _before_." Donna said. "You wait...it won't look so ancient once the Doctor gets it fixed."

"I should be out there," Clara said, "I know all these people. I know the layout of this place."

"Yeah well, I'm sure you'll get your chance," Donna said darkly and trying to distract her, laughed lightly. "Psychic paper!"

"I know!" Clara's face brightened. "If he'd told me they needed a way to communicate, I could have given him this." She took out a small, square device from her pocket.

"What's that?"

"_What's that_?" Peter mimicked her. "You don't know what a typepad is?"

"It's a messaging device," Clara said quickly before Donna could respond. "It doesn't work between different times, unless you have the right technology which of course my bosses did. Haven't used this for years. Not much call for it in the 80s." She pressed a button and looked intently at the small screen. Her face went pale.

"Clara? What's wrong?"

"I have a message," Clara said, "oh God..."

"Show me."

With a shaking hand, Clara held out the device. Peter looked worriedly at Donna as she took it and read the small print.

"_Miss Stokes_, _before you undertake to assist your new found friends in their endeavour, kindly remember your little friend and her secret which you were so desperate to conceal from us. She has proved very useful to us but nevertheless, no one is indispensible. _

"Your colleague," Donna breathed, handing it back.

"How did they find out?" Clara turned away from them, as if she had forgotten that they were there with her. "This wasn't supposed to...Oh God, I dragged her into this. This means they got her. They'll have... I have to get to her." She moved towards the door.

"Wait!" Donna grabbed her arms. "You can't run out there. Look at what happened to me. If she's here, we'll find her. I promise." In her head, the words felt meaningless. With a sudden chill, she remembered that someone was potentially being slowly poisoned with huon particles on this ship.

"She's dead," Clara said, her voice expressionless. "If they know...she won't have survived. I don't know when this was sent. I don't know how much time has passed even. It's hopeless."

"What's her secret?" Peter asked suddenly. The two women looked at him.

"I'm not just asking questions, ok? If we know more about her, we've a better chance of finding her."

Donna looked questioningly at Clara, grateful despite the circumstances that the situation was giving Peter some focus. She wasn't quite sure how she would cope with two hysterical people. Murder them, most likely, before anyone else got a chance to.

"She's not human." Clara blurted out the words as if she was forcing herself to say them.

"What?" Peter sounded incredulous. Donna nudged him.

"She joined the Time Agency soon after I became a Supervisor. And part of my job was organising medical checks and genetic filing for new recruits. And she...I liked her. She was really clever...they signed her up almost as soon as she walked through the door. She came to me on her first day and told me she couldn't do the medical, that she wasn't human and they'd see it immediately. To this day, I thank the stars that I helped her...I didn't even know her but I did know what they'd do if they got their hands on her. Experiments...you name it. She wouldn't be allowed to just walk out again. So I faked her checks and covered for her. I never told anyone, not a living soul. And then I dragged her into this. I told her that I was investigating them...she wanted to help. She..." Clara dissolved into tears.

"What was she?" Peter asked quietly, "Viran?"

"No. She never said and as time went on, it never mattered to me. We were friends. She was just Jenny."

Donna froze.

_On top of the stairs...before she fell...her face..._

"Jenny?" Now Donna had turned to the door, hardly knowing what she was doing.

"You've...you saw her?" Clara's voice was faint with fear. "You _know_ her?"

"It can't be though," Donna bit her lip. "It's too much. It can't be the same Jenny. It can't be."

_Not human._

_Seven years though. Clara was exiled seven years ago._

"I don't think it can be," she said. "But it's a hell of a coincidence."

"What is?"

"We know a Jenny too. But...she's dead. And the timeline doesn't fit. And..." She trailed off.

_Not human._

_That face on top of the stairs._

"We can't stay in here," Donna said decidedly, turning the door handle.

"But you said..."

"Yeah...and now I say we're going out there. Or I am anyway. You two are invisible...I'm not. It's not like I'm really any safer in here. If anything, I'm cornered."

"But the Doctor told us..."

"Yeah and if I obeyed, he'd worry I was losing my touch."

"You can have it back," Peter said timidly, fingering the TARDIS key.

"No...hang on to it for now." Donna opened the door and peered outside. The hall was empty. She stepped out.

Silently Peter and Clara walked behind her.


	9. Technical Hitch

They ran through the hallway once again and Donna pounced on something glittering on the floor.

"My chain! I'd forgotten!"

Peter had the decency to flush at the sight of it, she noticed.

"Come on." They ran down the stairs and into the communal areas, pausing for a moment to look into the dining room. Everyone looked fairly relaxed though they were still sitting in small groups and the chatter sounded more subdued than it had earlier.

"They seem alright," Clara said uncertainly.

Donna looked all around the room, desperately wanting to see the guard she'd seen earlier. If there was any chance it could be...

"_Come on_," Peter whispered behind her, "you'll be seen."

Sighing she turned and walked between them down to the control area. This time, the doors of the control rooms were closed. There was a faint murmur of voices from within.

"There's the Professor," she whispered to Clara, "the real one, I think."

They pressed themselves against the wall and peered cautiously into the room.

The Professor was holding up a test-tube of bubbling liquid and staring at a screen in front of him.

"You said she could withstand another dose," Private Newman was saying. Although he sounded terrified, there was an accusatory tone to this voice.

"A little more, I think," the Professor said. He slowly bent the jar and began to pour some of it into a clear tube to his left. He pressed the device on his wrist.

"Still nothing," he said after a moment.

"It's better that way," Private Newman said, "too much disturbances caused by these things could be catastrophic at this stage, sir. She's weakened greatly in the last hour. We don't know how much longer..."

"Her abilities are sufficient," the Professor said.

"She'll need to be taken around the ship again this evening. We need her presence in every area."

"She?" Peter whispered.

Donna waved him back. She could feel the familiar heaviness in the air again. Her skin felt like someone was tickling her. With pins.

"We need to take care of the other business," the Professor was saying.

"We need to move," Clara whispered. But it was too late. Suddenly he appeared in front of them. For one second, Donna prepared to brazen it out before she remembered that she no longer had her TARDIS key. With a cry, she started to run, hearing the footsteps of the others behind her.

"They're here!" The Professor shouted somewhere in their wake.

"Run!" Clara shouted.

They got to the end of the corridor until a breezy voice brought them to a screeching halt.

"Enough subterfuge," the Doctor said, striding past Donna and stopping in front of the Professor. Despite the situation, Donna couldn't help noticing that he looked very pleased with himself. When he reached the Professor however, his face was deadly cold. It never ceased to surprise her that someone so warm and full of enthusiasm could literally seem to burn with anger at other times.

"We're all about to crash and burn here, Professor, and if you're honest, you know that too."

The Professor took out his gun and waved his two helpers back.

"Check on the passengers." He turned back to them.

"Where is the Doctor?"

"Oh he's here, don't worry. Trying to figure out a way of getting you out of this mess. Because that's what it is. A mess. Your ideals are just about to cost the whole Earth."

"Nonsense," the Professor said. He indicated towards the nearest room, then turned and pointed the gun directly into Clara's face.

"Miss Stokes, after you."

They turned and followed. Out of the corner of her eye, Donna watched as Jack appeared at the far end of the corridor and made his way into the console room.

"How did you get on here?" the Professor was asking.

"I could say the same way as you," the Doctor replied coolly. "Where are the crew?"

"We are the crew," he replied smoothly and turned to look at Donna who was gasping now, and trying hard to cover the sound. Clara looked worriedly at her and placed a hand on her back. Peter stood in front of her, glaring at the professor. The gesture made Donna want to hug him. Or hit him. If he'd felt half as protective earlier...

"You need to let us fix this," the Doctor said, "because at the moment, the asteroid is little more than a couple of hours away and it's the least of your problems."

"I told you that was nonsense," the Professor said. But his eyes strayed upwards to where, over their heads, the dim light began to flicker over and over. There was a clanking sound from a nearby machine and when they turned to look at it, two sparks flew out and drifted upwards.

"It's started. You know it has." The Doctor's voice was grave.

"Minor malfunction," the Professor said. "This is clever distraction, Captain but it's not..."

"Professor!" The door flew open and Private Newman burst in, looking terrified. "Professor, it's failing."

The light over their head flickered a last time and died.

"Is she dead?" The Professor's voice was completely devoid of emotion.

"I think so, Sir. You told me this wouldn't happen." As if only just realising that the room was full of people, he stopped abruptly.

"Sub-human species do have the tiresome ability to be unpredictable."

"Sub-human! You'll pay for that!" Donna spluttered. "You've killed her, haven't you?" Suddenly, she couldn't bear to try out the name on him.

The Professor calmly pointed the gun at the Doctor.

"You and I will fetch your Doctor and bring him here to restart proceedings."

"You don't care," the Doctor asked. "You've just killed one of your team?"

"No one's indispensible." He gave Clara a pointed glance.

"You're certainly not!" There was a loud crash and in the darkness, Donna found herself clinging to Clara as they ducked instinctively. A blue light fell across their faces as the Doctor moved the screwdriver around. They could see a prone shape on the ground and Peter's face, grim and slightly sick looking as he placed a large metal object on the ground.

"You hit him?" Clara asked.

He nodded, as if unable to speak.

"We don't solve our problems with violence, Peter," the Doctor said.

"You're welcome," Peter muttered stonily.

The Doctor pointed the screwdriver at the door where Jack had come into view. He grabbed hold of Private Newman and held him in a firm grip.

"What happened? Is anyone hurt?"

"Is he alright?" Private Newman asked, his voice trembling. "This is treason of the highest order! You'll all be..."

"Dead in a minute if you don't keep quiet," Jack said.

"Can we save whoever it is they've poisoned?" Donna asked between furious coughs.

"It's too late for them," the Doctor said. His voice was tight with frustration. "The machine isn't working and that means they're dead. All we can do now is try to save ourselves."

"We can at least try!"

"Donna, the 200 innocents on this ship are our priority. Remember Pompeii? Sometimes you've got to look at..."

"The bigger picture, I know," she said, bending low to try and ease the pressure on her chest. The Doctor put a hand on her shoulder but when she looked up at him, his face was angry.

"Why did you come down? Was it really too much to ask...?"

"Yes!"

"I told you to stay put!"

Clara nudged her before she could say anything else. Probably best not to add to the stress of the moment. The Doctor took a deep breath.

"Ok, come on. We'll stay together then. Donna, walk with me. This room isn't doing you any good." He beckoned to Peter and Clara at the back then turned to lead them forwards.

"Doctor..." Donna began.

He faced her and now she could see that his eyes were full of pain.

"Did you know the name of Clara's colleague?" he asked quietly.

"She just told me. Doctor...do you think...the person I saw?"

"No." He said firmly but his eyes weren't quite meeting hers. "It can't be. We can't let it distract us."

Jack stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Doctor, I know what you're doing and why you're doing it. You're trying to protect yourself, I get that. I did it too, about my brother. Told myself there was no way he could be alive and it'd be best if I mourned for him and got on with it. But...if I hadn't...then maybe..." His voice trailed off and he took a long breath. "If there's any chance that Jenny's alive, you've got to bear the possibility in mind. You'll never forgive yourself otherwise."

The Doctor was silent. Donna stared at the ground. She really had no idea what to say to him.

"She's dead," he said eventually. "Donna and I saw her die. Clara last saw her colleague seven years ago. My...Jenny doesn't fit in with any of that."

"If she had enough of your genetics to regenerate or heal herself? And let's not forget, if she was a time agent, the seven years thing _could_ be possible. Don't rule it out, ok? If comes to nothing, you haven't failed her."

The Doctor looked at Jack for a moment and a look of deep understanding passed between them. He nodded shakily.

"You're ok with this?"

"Sure," Jack said. The Doctor pushed a lever on the control nearest to them as Jack pushed Private Newman over to the far end of the room and tied his wrists securely together.

"Let's get out of here," Jack said.

"Wait a moment." The Doctor pressed a few buttons on the screen in front of him then ran the screwdriver up and down the controls. He closed his eyes for a moment.

"Is there something wrong?" Donna asked hesitantly. "I mean, something else?"

"No." He pressed a button again, and a faint yellow light glowed in front of them. The ship shuddered violently again.

"Are we about to hit?" Jack asked.

"No, no. I just sent a distress signal," the Doctor whispered. "To Vira." Private Newman strained his head, trying desperately to see what he was doing.

"What good can that do?" Jack asked, and then stared at the computer.

"Oh _yeah_," he breathed.

"Their telekinetic skills aren't that powerful," Clara said. "Sorry, I don't mean to be negative but I've studied these people. We can't depend on..."

"Every race of people is powerful when their powers are combined!" The Doctor said. "Think of it! The visitors from Earth are the main thing on everyone's mind there right now...and then they get a distress call! I don't know what they can do for us but I guarantee you they can do something!"

"Long shot though," Donna wheezed. The Doctor looked at her.

"Any better?"

She nodded uncertainly. Her symptoms weren't getting worse and she supposed that was a good sign.

"Have you a better idea?" His voice was neither defensive nor angry. It was a simple question and that frightened her.

"Come on then," he said quietly, stepping over some wires and indicating the door. He stepped out, peering around him.

Donna turned to follow but as she stepped past the threshold, she felt something, not quite a breeze but more of a change in the atmosphere. It was like two magnets when they wouldn't meet. She couldn't pass the doorway. She stepped back uncertainly.

"What's wrong?" Peter asked.

"You try."

He stepped easily out through the door.

"It's ok," he said to her uncertainly.

But when she tried again, the same things happened. Desperately, she attempted to push against it. The Doctor held her hands, pulling her forward but it was hopeless. Whatever held her back was stronger than the lot of them put together.

"I'll try," Jack said, moving past her.

The same thing happened. He pushed against it until Donna thought he would end up on the ground. Eventually, out of breath, he stepped back. Clara had the same result. Donna had to admit to being slightly relieved that she wasn't the only one.

"It's no good," Jack said to the Doctor. "You'll have to go on. It's stopping the three of us for a reason. It's like it's programmed."

"I can't," the Doctor said. "Can't leave you with this lot."

"You have to, Doctor. There's hardly any time left."

"Go on," Donna urged, "we'll be ok."

"I'll stay too," Peter said suddenly, moving to step back into the room.

"No!" Donna said sharply and the Doctor pulled him back gently. "It's best if you go with the Doctor. Keep him out of the trouble, yeah?"

Peter looked at her uncertainly. She could swear he looked worried.

"Take this back then," he said, and pulled the key over his head.

"No! You keep it." She closed his hand around it. "You might need it to come and get us, ok? When everything's sorted out." She hoped she sounded more confident than she felt. She was seriously worried about her sanity, truth be told. She actually felt protective of the little sod.

"Yeah, come on, Peter," the Doctor said, "I'll need the help." He turned to look at Donna, Jack and Clara.

"I'll be back soon as I can, ok? Look after each other."

They stared at each other in the gloom as the Doctor and Peter disappeared out of sight.

"Why do you think we can't get out?" Clara asked. Her teeth were chattering. "Why us? I mean, I can imagine why me."

"Nothing will happen to you," Jack said firmly. He turned to Private Newman.

"Why can't we get out?"

"The Professor needs you," he replied.

"Why us?"

"You're the Doctor, aren't you?" There was a pause. "Aren't you?"

"Yeah!" He didn't actually sound that convinced. Donna shot him a warning look.

"What about me?" she asked.

"Your genetics had similarities to the Doctor's and..." Private Newman stopped speaking as there was a murmur from the prone figure on the ground.

"Professor! Professor! Are you alright, sir?"

The man stirred, stared up at them and at Private Newman's bound wrists. He rolled his eyes.

"Where is the other one? The captain?"

"Ran away," the Private said. "I'm sorry, Sir."

"No matter. He can die along with everyone else. Take the picture."

Donna jumped slightly at the change in conversation. As she watched, Private Newman raised his wrist device towards Jack and Clara who stood together at the controls.

"Develop it and leave it in my office. That's where I found it."

"It's too late to try and appease them now," Jack said.

"What are you talking about?"

"The Reapers. You've messed with time so much now that keeping things as they should be won't make any difference anymore. They'll come for you first, Professor. Every time agent knows the consequences of messing up."

"And every Timelord, presumably? I don't think you're supposed to be here either," the Professor replied.

"Maybe we are," Jack said. "You had our photo, remember? Or some past version of you had. Going back on your own timeline...that's got to hurt."

The professor ignored him and turned to press a button on his wrist device. A panel on one wall opened to display shelves of small glass vials and three screens.

"What's he mean about my genetics?" Donna whispered.

"They're probably a bit mixed up still," Jack replied quietly. "Come to think of it, a hospital visit on Earth could be disaster for you at the moment. Remnants of Timelord genes. What would they think?"

"Same as this lot probably. That they can experiment on us." She stared at the glass jars.

"You two," the Professor continued, holding out what looked like a metal probe of some sort. "You two are, of course, sub-species but nonetheless, you have the ability to put this right. Your Timelord genes..."

"Sub species," Donna said loudly before she could stop herself, "let me tell you, Professor, this _sub-species _has the ability to take that stick and shove it right where..."

"Donna!" Clara hissed. She turned and looked directly at the Professor. "She's human. You should let her out with the others. She's definitely human. Honestly."

"Honestly." The Professor laughed. "_Honestly_ is a word that doesn't hold much stock with _you_." He motioned to Jack. "Doctor, I'd like to say it was a pleasure to make your acquaintance but all I really want from you is to fix this machine. And you'll do it." He held out a vial of bubbling liquid to Jack.

"Will I?" Jack asked. "So you can just kill all these people your own way?"

"Think of the Earth," the Professor said, "from all accounts, our planet means a lot to you. This is a small sacrifice compared to what can happen down there if this machine can't function."

"We're a small sacrifice, you mean."

"If you want to put it that way, Doctor. After all, I think one thing we can agree on is the important of the survival of human race. The _pure_ human race."

Jack stared him down.

"There's only thing in this room, Professor, that isn't _pure_."

He swirled the liquid in the vial and raised it to his lips.

"Your good health, ladies."

He drank the contents in one gulp.


	10. Bitter Coincedence

They raced up the stairs and through the large doors of the dining hall. As if nothing had happened in the meantime, the passengers still sat quietly. It was obvious that the changes in the movement had caused concern. No one spoke and most of the children sat with or near the adults, huddled together in corners.

"It's going to be alright," The Doctor said clearly, "but we need to work together to get this ship to its destination and quickly."

"What's happening?" a woman called back, "have you hi-jacked this ship?"

"No!" The Doctor looked up from the key in his hand. "Well, in a sense, I might be about to. This ship is having problems and I can fix them. You need to trust me on this, all of you, because you'll need to help me. Think about it. Have any of you seen any of the crew you know in the last few hours? They need your help too."

"Are we going to crash?"

"No. Absolutely not. Now...listen to me. First of all, I need you all to focus. Think of Vira and why you want to go there. Just one really good reason."

Peter couldn't blame his fellow passengers for looking as incredulous as he felt.

"What if we don't have one?" a young girl asked.

"You do," he told her, "even if it's curiosity, or the fact that someone loved you enough to want you safe. Get that thought and hold on to it. Really concentrate. I know it sounds daft but you've got to trust me."

He turned solemnly to Peter.

"You have a reason now. Don't you?"

Shakily, Peter nodded, terrified at the Doctor's insight into his mind.

"Collective telekinetic skills can be a powerful thing, believe me. Combine with collective thought and huon particles and you never know what they can do. Virans and humans combined!"

The ship buckled suddenly. Peter had almost gotten used to its trembling and shudderings in the last hour or so but this one nearly knocked him to the ground. He found himself clutching the Doctor's arm. Every light in the room flickered and died. Someone screamed and a crazy thought entered his head that for the rest of his life (however long that might be), he might never get rid of the sound of that scream.

"What happened?" he asked, "are we crashing?"

"No." He felt the Doctor's hands on his shoulders, steadying him. "The machine...the person being used as the machine. They've crashed." He sounded shaky. Peter watched as he aimed his device at the lights. A faint glow appeared from each one, just enough to see by.

"Show me your key," he said to Peter.

Peter lifted the key, breathing in sharply as his fingers touched it.

"I didn't do anything to it, honest." Even in the semi-dark, he saw it glow.

"It's boiling hot," he told him.

The Doctor took the key carefully from him and held it out. With every second, it seemed to glow brighter.

He stared at the key as if he couldn't take his eyes off it.

"This is good," he said softly, "we can save everyone else now."

But his face looked shattered. With a hand that shook slightly, he reached into his pocket for the notebook that had amused Donna so much and wrote something on it.

He faced the terrified crowd again.

"Keep that thought in your heads. Please. It's very important." He lowered his voice. "Come on, Peter.

...

"Jack? Are you alright?" Donna watched in horror as Jack stumbled, leaning against the control to steady himself. She moved towards him, aware of the air thickening as she did, as if about to attack her. Jack waved her back.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He didn't sound it.

"It's not working, Sir," Private Newman said, typing frantically into one of the keyboards beside him.

"Give it time," the Professor said.

"We don't have time! It's minutes now, Sir! We need to leave!"

"Gather the staff," the Professor said and Private Newman pressed a button. An alarm rang out somewhere in the distance. "By the time they assemble, the machine will be operational."

"If not..." Jack was gasping. "You'll have no home to go to."

"Quiet, please." The professor handed him another vial.

"Stop it!" Donna shouted. "He can't take anymore!"

Jack winked at her. "Are you calling me weak? I can drink anything!" But as soon as he finished the sentence, he slid to the ground.

"Jack!"

"Maybe she should take some too," Private Newman said, "two instead of one. It just might take the extra."

"Don't go near her!" Clara shouted, running to stand in front of Donna. The Professor pushed her roughly aside.

As he approached her with the vial, Donna felt her skin burn, as if drops of boiling liquid were falling onto her, one by one. She struggled to take a breath, turning her head frantically in desperation. She felt the glass being pushed into her hand. Clara ran forward again and took it from her.

"Leave her alone!"

Private Newman ran forward, grabbed Clara and pushed her down again. She landed awkwardly on the hard ground and lay still. The vial cracked and fell, liquid oozing away from it. A thin steam floated upwards from it.

Private Newman grabbed the Professor's arm and pulled them both away from the spilt liquid.

"We're not in short supply, my dear, don't worry," the Professor said smoothly as he moved toward the cupboard. Donna glanced at Jack in desperation. He was trying to stand and in one hand, she could see the outline of the psychic paper that had amused her so much. Had the Doctor communicated something?

Her hands were getting redder by the moment. Jack's eyes were open and he was reaching for the controls nearest to him, trying to pull himself fully upright.

"Here we go." They were both approaching her now, a new vial in the Professor's hand. Donna forced herself to go still. She was shaking, whether purely from fear or the effort to breathe, she wasn't sure. This time, he brought the vial to her lips. Jack, leaning as far as the ropes would let him, had almost reached the controls with the tips of her fingers.

Donna opened her mouth and raised her hand at the same time. She pushed the vial as hard as she could, tipping a bottom corner of it with her fingers. She buckled backwards, pushing with all her might.

The vial fell. She stepped back, trying hard to get as far back as she could. But there was no need. It had fallen over the two men.

There was a dead silence. Donna fell back against the wall. The steam from the liquid was choking her. But it was also choking the two men. Shadows seemed to fall over them. Their faces were deadly pale. Private Newman shouted out once and staggered forward towards another control. He pulled a panel out to reveal what looked like a square tile on the floor.

The door opened and the room was filling with people wearing the uniform of the crew. They were all pressing buttons on their wrist devices and moving to form a line in front of the mat. Some of them stared in concern at the Professor who was cowering on the ground but most were too intent on the actions of Private Newman.

"You're safer here," Jack said to them. "Listen! It's not safe anymore. I was a Time Agent. I know how this works!"

One or two people spared him a glance but one by one, they moved forward to stand on the square. Two of them pulled the Professor with them by his arms. They all stepped on cautiously, then moved forward to huddle together with the others. When they were all within the confines of the square, Private Newman reached over and pressed a button.

"Impact in 50 seconds," he said.

"The asteroid!" Clara gasped.

"Don't!" Jack shouted to them. "Seriously, it's not safe! You don't know where you're going!"

None of them responded.

Jack staggered forwards, trying to reach the controls again but before he got there, they all vanished on the spot.

"They've got away..." Donna whispered.

"Not quite." Jack's face was grim. "Wait."

The square buckled violently, even though no one stood on it anymore.

"Are we crashing?" Donna asked as Clara grabbed hold of her.

There was a flash of light and Donna gasped as an outline of a familiar creature appeared on top of it...one of those dark birds that had chased them in Churington, when Clara's mistake had caused time to go haywire. She covered her face, knowing that running was impossible.

The whole ship trembled and she buried her head, thinking of the passengers, of the Doctor and Peter walking away from them and the blond girl catching her eye on the staircase.

"It's ok." Jack's voice was strained. "Donna! Look."

She raised her head and the creature was gone. The rumbling sounds were quieter. At the other end of the room, Clara was sitting up slowly, looking around with wide eyes.

"Are those creatures all over the ship?"

"No." Jack leaned against the controls, looking sick. "I make a better Paradox machine than I thought I would!"

"How did you know that liquid would harm them?"

"I didn't. Not really. But it was the only weapon you had! And I thought...huon particles...Paradox machine. They are a paradox." He groaned softly.

"What was the control you pressed?"

"Disabled the Paradox machine for once and all. The Doctor...wrote it." He sounded as if speaking was an effort. "Might give that poor soul a chance. But it's banished _them_." He looked at the square tile. "Transmat couldn't operate. They've cancelled themselves out. All of them."

"You tried to warn them."

"Yeah." He closed his eyes for a moment.

"We haven't crashed."

"No. Can't you hear the engine? Something's pulling us away."

"Come on," he said finally, moving unsteadily towards Donna and helping her gently to her feet. "You need to get out of here. Come on, Clara. Can you walk?"

"Probably better than you can." Clara was still staring at the spot where the Time Agents had stood, making their escape. She bowed her head and followed them.

...

Peter couldn't speak. He stared around, then stared around again. If he had once thought that nothing more would ever surprise him, he'd been so wrong.

"As you've noticed," the Doctor was saying, "it's bigger on the inside!" He patted a wall of the ship with great affection.

Peter nodded, and struggled to speak.

"You and Donna...you travel in this?"

"Yes." The Doctor came around the controls and stood in front of Peter, staring intently at him.

"Peter, it's important you understand this. I can't ask you to come and travel with us. I'm sorry, and I'm sorry that I can't explain why. Well, in a way I can. It wouldn't be fair on you, for a start. The people who travel with me, whether or not, they're happy with them, they have established lives back on Earth or wherever. You haven't. And I can't take someone who has nowhere to come from and nowhere to return to."

Peter nodded. Yesterday, he thought, he would have shouted. Because in a way, he'd wanted the Doctor to save him from the moment they met.

"You'll stay me though, will you?" He looked away as he asked. "Just until I know who I'm going to live with."

"Of course we will," the Doctor replied. He pulled a lever and pressed down hard.

"Peter? Press that red button, will you? And hold down that lever beside you."

"What are you doing?"

"Peter." The Doctor smiled at him. "_We're_ towing an asteroid! So, that button, if you would?"

Peter did as he was told. He kept his hand steady and pressed as hard as he could as if the movement was the most important thing he had ever done.

...

They burst into the broom closet and stopped dead, nearly crashing into one another.

"Has it been taken?" Clara asked.

"Yes!" Jack sounded gleeful.

"Let's hope it's the Doctor that took it," Donna said.

They walked slowly down the hallway and back down towards the large dining room. As they pushed open the door, Donna was amazed at the silence within. The lights were turned down low and the people sat silently, in groups, looking as though they were in a trance.

"Are they alright?" she whispered.

Catherine suddenly stood up and crept towards her.

"It's working," she whispered. "I know it's working. I have to say, I thought your husband was mad. But whatever he did, it's having an effect."

"What did he want you to do?"

"Think about Vira and why we want to go there. Do you know, I think we're actually moving again!"

"Yeah, I think we are." She looked around the surreal scene of adults and children whispering and dreaming together in the midst of now chaotic room. Broken china lay on the floor and the dim lights made the plush room look grey and gloomy.

"We now have a crew!" Jack remarked.

Donna turned around, realising that they had walked past two of the crew on her way into the room without even noticing. Recognising Frida, she ran up to her.

"You're back! Where were you?"

Frida looked slightly disorientated.

"There was an emergency," she said faintly, "I don't know. Maybe we shut down for a while...or fumes knocked us out. Thank goodness everyone is ok!"

"Yeah." Donna walked back to Jack.

"Where were they?" Clara was asking. "Banished?"

"Yeah. The Time Agency controlled the Paradox machine to let the ship move back in time and cancel out the crew. They're back now that it's destroyed." For a few seconds, they were silent.

"We should find that person now," Donna said, feeling a sharp stab of fear.

"Yeah. I hope it's not..." Jack looked at Clara.

"Me too," Donna whispered.

...

The Doctor was looking intently at a screen in front of him. The movement of the TARDIS seemed to have slowed a bit. Peter felt himself relaxing, feeling rather than hearing the steady hum of the ship.

"I wish our ship had been like this one," he said out loud.

"Donna thought that too. She wasn't happy in your ship from the moment we came on board. Mind you, with good reason as it turned out."

"Do you think she's ok?"

"She'll be fine," the Doctor said. "When Jack says he'll keep someone safe, I know he will."

"Does he travel with you too?"

"Sort of. Sometimes. Our paths cross quite a bit!"

"It must be..." Peter trailed off, looking around him in wonder. "Do you think there's anything on Vira like this? I mean...time travel and going to space?"

"There's got to be, hasn't there? They invited you lot. Come here."

Peter followed the Doctor to the door, jumping back slightly as he started to open it.

"Is that safe?"

"Yeah!" The Doctor pulled the door open and Peter moved tentatively to stand beside him. He looked out and for a second, thought he was going to faint.

"Ok?"

"Yeah..." He stared at the night sky in front of him and its distant glow of colour and light.

"Is that a planet?"

"That's your asteroid, Peter," the Doctor said softly.

"It's huge!"

"Yes."

"It'll kill everything on Earth, won't it?"

The Doctor was silent for a moment.

"Peter. You've been very patient with all the questions we couldn't answer so I'm going to tell you something. And you can't tell a soul. They'll know soon enough anyway. This is between us, right?"

Peter nodded, swallowing hard.

"It's not to going to hit Earth. I've pulled it out of the way. I could have done it sooner, of course I could. I've always known it wouldn't hit. But I couldn't take the chance that something else was supposed to happen to stop it colliding. It's all part of time travel."

"So really, we never had to go to Vira?" Peter held on the door, suddenly feeling unreal.

"You did and you do. Peter, this is one of the most important things that happens in your history. And some day, that'll make more sense than it does now. You've started a process that will save the Earth many times over in the future. You can only survive on your own for so long."

"I know," Peter whispered.

"I don't underestimate the cost to you," the Doctor said gently.

"Everyone else did."

"Everyone else didn't know what it was like."

Suddenly, hardly making a decision to, Peter found himself sobbing. And it wasn't embarrassing. And it wasn't stupid. Because the Doctor's hand on his shoulder and the vast expanse of emptiness outside seemed to say to him that he'd be a fool not to.

When he began to calm, he realised that for the first time in weeks, he could breathe freely and that made him think of Donna.

"We're heading back to the ship," the Doctor said, handing him a tissue. He went to close the door and then opened it once more.

"Just look down there."

Peter looked. The lights glistened now, taking shape, rising and falling in the gloom.

"_That's_ a planet."

"That's Vira."

...

It was easier to breathe in the treasure room and that thought made Donna feel very uneasy. Surely if the effects of the particles were dissipating, it wasn't good for the person. Person. She couldn't think any more specifically than that. She knew that the others felt the same. Clara's lips were pursed and her face was pale. Jack kept beginning sentences and stopping in the middle of them.

Jack sighed in frustration as they moved to the next room.

"We'll have to search every room. And even then..." He stopped suddenly. "Look."

He pointed to a spot near another desk of controls. Beside it, was a small white bed. A small white bed with ropes. Frayed ropes. Clara gave a small gasp.

"This is where she was kept."

Beside the bed was a table full of empty vials and what looked like a heart monitor.

"She can't have got far," Jack said somberly.

They left the room and walked up the hallway. Donna stopped suddenly, looking at the staircase.

"What is it?" Jack asked.

"My arms..." She held out her arms to them, red blotches quickly taking shape.

"I'd be allergic to her, wouldn't I?"

"Yes!" They ran up the stairs together and at the top, was a familiar sound, the most beautiful familiar sound, Donna had ever heard.

"The TARDIS!"

They burst into the broom closet as the TARDIS began to materialise, almost knocking each other down in their haste to get in.

Donna was the first to see her, raising her head slightly as the ship came into view then collapsing downwards into total stillness. She thought she screamed. The door of the TARDIS opened.

"Doctor!" Donna screamed, unable to say anymore. She saw him look at her, then at the ground in front of him. Heard Peter say something and take her arm. Felt Jack's arms around her as he pulled her from the room.

And the Doctor's voice, cracked and strained.

"Jenny."


	11. Circling the airport

Jenny lay on the ground beside the TARDIS. Her face was ashy pale and her eyes were closed. She looked small...like one of the children. Donna felt tears on her face and Jack's hands tightened on her shoulders. Silently they watched as Clara and the Doctor approached her. She could hardly bear to look at the Doctor's face. Jack closed the door gently.

...................................................................................................................................................

"Jenny!" The Doctor shook her shoulder. Beside him, he heard Clara crying quietly.

"Sit on her other side," he said to her as he scanned her body with the screwdriver.

"It's too much...they've dosed her. Far more than Donna," he murmured, "a human can only survive for so long with this stuff."

"But she's not human."

The Doctor looked at her.

"You knew this?"

Clara nodded.

"She was with you? In the Time Agency? She was a Time Agent?"

"One of the best," Clara said, her voice shaking badly, "and I mean good by my standards, not _theirs_. Can we do anything for her? Drain the poison out some way?"

"No... It's shutting her whole system down." He closed his eyes for a moment.

"I never knew you knew her," Clara said, "I can't understand..._me_ meeting _you_. The coincidence of it all." She trailed off, looking at Jenny.

The door began to open.

"Donna, I told you! Stay out of here!"

"It's Peter," Clara told him quietly.

"You too, Peter!"

"I will." Peter's voice was shaky. "I just...Donna told me to give you this for her." He held out something small and shiny.

The Doctor stared at the small, gold chain.

"She wanted to give it to Jenny," Peter said. "She said...something personal from you and her."

The Doctor curled his fingers around the chain. He felt numb, as if he was standing at looking at the scene from far, far away. Jenny had died alone here because he hadn't wanted to believe. He had saved the ship and lost her. Dimly he was aware of Clara opening his hand gently and taking the chain from him. She bent over and fixed it around Jenny's neck.

"We'll take her into to the TARDIS," the Doctor said. "The least she deserves is some dignity."

"Doctor..."

"Please. I just want to get her off this ship."

"Doctor..." Clara squeezed his arm. "Her colour's changed."

The Doctor leaned over Jenny's still form, looking intently at her face. There was something. Not much. A faint flush in her cheeks. He felt her forehead and then checked her pulse.

"She's fighting back," he whispered. Clara bent over, tears still running down her face.

"Jenny. We're here...Clara and the Doctor! Please...try and wake up."

For a second there was silence. Absolute silence. Then the sound. A sound that dragged him back to a past long gone but never forgotten.

A small, shuddering breath.

"God...how?" Clara was laughing and crying as she rubbed Jenny's arms, trying to warm her body.

"It's the chain!" The Doctor banged his head. "The chain! It makes sense!" He looked up at Peter who hurriedly took a step backwards.

"What?"

"The chain has been in the TARDIS as long as Donna has! And that metal...it's a great absorber! Great...the molecules...they attach to each other...sort of like osmosis. From the Vortex...you see there's these particles called..."

"Try saying it in English," Peter said.

"The metal in her chain gave Donna some protection against the huon energy. They affected her more severely when the chain was gone! That's when she really reacted to it. And it's helping Jenny now. Jenny! Can you hear me?"

Jenny's eyelids flickered.

"Please wake up," Clara whispered, leaning over and clutching her hands in her own.

Jenny opened her eyes. For a second she stared upwards. Slowly she focused on Clara.

"You did it," she whispered. "You got here."

"_You_ got her here," the Doctor said quietly.

He was vaguely aware of Clara getting to her feet, murmuring to Peter and leading him out of the room.

Finally, her eyes met his.

"Hello Father," she said.

He couldn't speak anymore. Gently he raised her up, holding her tightly in his arms.

...............................

Donna couldn't look at the shut door anymore. And looking at Jack was equally hard.

"If I'd realised, if I thought about it," he started to say, "we could have got to her sooner. She was a lotto ticket to those bastards. Timelord genetics. You told us, Donna, remember? After you regenerated, you told us she was alive."

"I was probably dreaming."

"Yeah, but maybe not."

Jack started to say something else but the door was opening again. Donna watched apprehensively as Clara and Peter walked out. Clara was clutching Peter's arm.

"She's alive," she said, almost in a whisper.

"What?"

"She's alive, Donna! Your chain revived her!" Sobbing, Clara grasped Donna's arms. "How did you know?"

"My chain?"

"It saved her!"

"But it's only a chain! I wanted her to know someone cared about her on this ship..." Donna looked at Jack in bewilderment, almost afraid to believe what she was hearing.

"Will she be ok?" he asked Clara.

"I think so. She's conscious."

Tears running down her cheeks, Donna kept her eyes fixed on the door. After a moment, Jack patted her shoulder gently.

"I'll go and see," he said gently.

................

Jack entered the room cautiously.

"Doctor, sorry to disturb but we need to know if she's ok." He smiled at the pale figure in the Doctor's arms.

"Captain Jack Harkness...and you must be Jenny!"

"Hello," she said shyly, offering him a radiant smile.

"Jack," the Doctor said warningly, "really..._don't_!"

"It's ok," Jenny said, "he's just saying hello."

"He's never just...Never mind. You'll see. Jack is..."

"Constantly misunderstood," Jack said, grinning at Jenny.

"I owe you an apology, Captain," Jenny said. "It was me who told them you were the Doctor. I didn't really think of you as a real person, I'm afraid. I just wanted to try and keep him safe. I should have known from the photo that you'd be here too. But I panicked. I heard you got shot."

"Don't worry," Jack said, "happens to me all the time! Besides, it helped us. A lot. Do you know where they keep the particles? If we destroy them all, Donna might just be able to say hello to you!"

Jenny nodded, "the room under this one." She looked down the floor. "They thought I could withstand them because of my genetics."

"Were you a prisoner?"

She shrugged. "Kind of. Not at first. I..." She looked at the Doctor. "I woke up on Messaline and you were gone."

"I'm so sorry," he said softly.

"I stole a ship and headed out...to see the world, and find you! And after a while, I found a way to make it travel in time. I couldn't control it very well but..."

"How'd you get it to do that?" The Doctor looked fascinated.

"Well, there was this wire...and I was on this planet with all this solar power. It was like electricity only much stronger. And if you combined it with the surface energy of the ship, and create a sort of..."

"Maybe we can do the technical bit later," Jack suggested. Not that he wasn't interested but the two of them looked so absorbed, it looked like it was going to be a longer conversation than they had time for.

"Right. Yes." Jenny grinned at him. "Well, I could do it sometimes even if I couldn't always end up exactly where I wanted to."

"Happens to us all," the Doctor said.

"I tried to track you," she said, "I could sense the energy, you see, where people were time-travelling and I thought you were only one. I nearly found you a few times too. Midnight..." She grimaced slightly, "Vira. Earth."

"You've been to Earth?"

"Yeah only it was 4567 and I thought I'd found you but I'd actually found a group of time agents. And then I realised that if I joined them, I could learn more about time travel and look for you properly. So I did. And it was brilliant at first. I met Clara and she was so good. She covered for me so I didn't have to do the medical. And she told me things to convince them that I was from their time. All I had to do was buying and selling...after hurtling around space by myself, it was easy! I tried visiting Earth again, in your time but it was _gone_."

"Oh yeah. Long story."

"My daughter...a time agent." The Doctor shook his head in mock sorrow.

"Where did you go wrong?" Jack asked.

She smiled briefly at them but her eyes were sad. The Doctor gave her hand a squeeze.

"You got involved in Clara's research," Jack said gently.

"Yes. I found Clara sneaking around their base one night and made her tell me. She knew that there was a section and that they didn't want humans breeding with other races and what they were planning for this ship. We spied on them all we could. We found out that they were building a paradox machine and I could feel how wrong that was. It was almost like something physically wrong. It made me sick to think of it."

The Doctor nodded understandingly.

"They caught Clara one night. The Professor had cameras set up in her home. He heard us talking there and they made a pretence of firing her for poor performance. She sneaked into his office for her teleport but of course they caught her."

"She told us," the Doctor said.

"I pressed the button before they could," Jenny said. "They have horrible exile times to send people back to. And usually with a price on their head."

"You sent her to the 1980s," Jack said, sounding amused.

"Better than the Dark Ages! How did she get here anyway?"

"We met her," the Doctor said, "in a little town where she'd just nearly caused the end of the world with her vortex manipulator! I meet a lot of time agents up to no good on my travels!" He nodded at Jack and raised an eyebrow.

Jenny grinned.

"She told us all about her brave colleague," he said sadly. "If only I'd asked her more. But the whole story about this ship kept distracting me."

Jack sat beside them. "So, they kept you locked up?"

"No, I got away." For a second, she looked quite pleased with herself. "And I decided to go and see what happens in 2075 so I travelled forwards. Seven years in their time and back to The Time Agency. I got caught there. It was like the professor knew I'd come back. I tried to sneak in but they were waiting for me."

"You escaped and went back?" The Doctor asked in confusion.

"Yes! Well, I had to know what happened then, didn't I? Besides, they went on about you so much I knew you were part of it and it was the best way to find you as well!"

"There might have been safer ways."

She shrugged. "You save planets and people. I wanted to do the same. And I felt close to those children, even though I'd never met them. Because the Professor talked about them the way he talked about anyone who wasn't human. The way he talked about me when he did the medical and found out I wasn't human. Like we were objects. Or animals. That's why I helped them with the Paradox machine. Because it kept the children safe until you got here."

"It nearly killed you." The Doctor's face was murderous.

"I know. But I knew you'd get here. Besides, I thought I'd be ok. I was fine, walking around but every day it got harder until...a while ago. I thought I was dying. I knew Donna knew I was here but anytime I saw her, she was...well..."

"Drunk or concussed." The Doctor closed his eyes. "I didn't listen to her."

"Donna was drunk?" Jack asked interestedly. At the Doctor's look, he stood up.

"Ok, I'm off to find the rest of those particles."

Jenny laid a hand on the side of the TARDIS and smiled at them.

"I did plenty of running," she said.

................................................................

"Are you ok?" Donna asked Peter who stood silently beside her, looking a bit shell-shocked. Again.

He seemed to snap to attention.

"Yeah thanks. I'm glad she's ok. Your friend."

"It's down to you in a way."

"How?"

"Well, if you hadn't taken my chain, it wouldn't have occurred to me to give it to her, would it? I wouldn't have given it a second thought. It was on my mind because you took it and I got it back and it was just in my pocket. My granddad gave me that chain. He'd be chuffed to know it saved someone!"

"Is he still alive?"

"Yeah! In my time, I mean."

"That's good," Peter said. "He must love to hear about your travels."

A loud voice echoed through the hallway.

"Crew members. Please prepare your passengers for landing. Repeat. Landing in 30 minutes."

"Seat belts on," Donna muttered.

"Oh more than seat-belts," the Doctor said, emerging from the doorway, "but let's not bother with all that. We'll sit in the TARDIS." Jenny was behind him, leaning against the doorway. She held out her arms to Donna then offered the chain instead.

"Take this back," she said, "not that I'm not happy to have it but it'll protect you from me!"

"Thanks," Donna took it and put it around her neck, "I want to say hello to you properly!" She hugged Jenny tightly, marvelling at the fact of the girl being alive and well and in their presence.

Jack returned, giving the Doctor a brief thumbs-up. He still didn't look right, Donna thought worriedly. It wasn't like Jack to look so tired. He said something to Clara, obviously a joke because they both laughed. But his eyes still looked shadowed.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked, looking closely at her.

"Fine, I think." She looked at her arms and felt her cheeks. "I've forgotten what proper breathing feels like!"

"You'll be even better when we get out of here."

"How can we landing anyway?" she asked. "We were nowhere near Vira a few hours ago!"

"The TARDIS righted that," the Doctor said proudly, "pulled the ship back to its proper time. We were only days away from Vira when we came on board."

"Pity you didn't tell me that at the time."

The Doctor, without warning, pulled her into a tight hug.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"For what?"

He held her at arm's length and for a second, didn't reply. Then he smiled broadly at her.

"Come on. I bet you're dying to get some Viran fresh air!"

As they walked into the TARDIS, she glanced back at Peter.

"Ready?"

He squared his shoulders and smiled nervously at her and Donna realised suddenly that whatever care and protection he still needed, somewhere in the last few hours, he had become more of a man than a child. They sat beside the Doctor and Jenny while Jack showed Clara around the TARDIS controls and she crossly reminded him that she had driven this ship alone before. Donna caught the Doctor's eye and grinned.

"I have to say though," Jack was saying, "the skill involved in certain manoeuvres! I mean, look at Donna and the Doctor here. Went into this ship with some vague plan to pretend to be a couple. Came out married with a son _and_ daughter. You gotta admit, that's pretty impressive!"


	12. Arivals and departures

They waited until the other passengers had left the ship before following them down what looked like a metal gangplank.

Donna stopped, half-way down, marvelling at the first sight of Vira. She had been here before, of course. Vira had seemed beautiful to her, mostly because of how much like Earth it was. She'd been a bit homesick at the time. Now, she had a chance to gaze around at the distant countryside and appreciate the differences. The houses were dome shaped, like small temples and dotted across fields of green and gold, they looked exotic, like something out of a fairytale.

The landing strip was full of people. Again, Donna had seen Virans before but not such a lot at once and their telekinetic skills were amazing in the face of bags, boxes and containers. They all floated beside or front of people as they raced to and fro. They stared in wonder at the visitors from Earth, congratulating everyone on their safe arrival and anxiously enquiring about the nature of the distress call.

"No, we were just fine," one official hastily explained, "we must have sent that by accident! Hope we didn't worry you! Although, your help in the last lap was much appreciated!"

"It's beautiful," Clara breathed behind her. "In all my days, I never dreamed I'd actually get here!" She and Jenny smiled at each other.

"All the research finally paid off," Jenny said.

Inside the first building they reached, each passenger was checked and cleared before entering a large reception room with tables of food and drink. As the children went through, they headed to the tables, completely at ease with the choice of food.

It was sight of the Virans and humans staring at each other in wonder, Donna thought, as if they couldn't believe the other was real. She could have watched them forever.

Gradually, the children were taken, some alone, some in twos and some with a parent, for interviews which would determine the families whom they would live with. The children waiting to be called for these interviews looked strained and anxious. Jenny and Clara went to sit with them, chatting lightly to them in an effort to distract them as much as possible until the moment came. Donna and the Doctor sat with Peter.

"Do they still think you're my parents?" he asked.

"No," the Doctor said, "I disabled our perception filters when we landed. They know we're strangers but no one's arrested us yet, surprisingly!"

"It does tend to happen when we arrive somewhere new," Donna told him. "Quite a lot, really."

Peter smiled, then glanced at the doors of interview rooms.

"It'll be fine," the Doctor assured him, "tell them you've just towed an asteroid across space. They'll be queuing up for you then!"

"Peter Murray!" A voice called.

Peter stood up and looked back at them.

"I'll see you in a minute." There was a slight question in his voice.

"We'll be here," Donna said. They watched him walk into the room.

"I never thought I'd say this but..." Donna sighed. "I'll kind of miss him."

"Yeah, I know," the Doctor said. "He's going to be fine though. This planet is really good for him."

"How do you know?"

"Didn't I say?" the Doctor asked innocently. "I've met Peter. In my past and in his future. And when I did, he knew enough about time travel to know not to tell me where I'd meet his younger self, only that I would. I always wondered why he wouldn't elaborate very much about his journey here. I was dying to know all about it when I knew he was one of the evacuees. He only told me a few little details."

"You knew him? When we met him?"

"Yeah...soon as I heard them say his name. It made sense and you..." The Doctor turned and looked at her intently.

"Donna, one of the things he told me as an adult was that on that ship, a woman he got to know showed him the first compassion he'd ever known."

"What? _Me_?"

"Yes. Think about it. You gave him your TARDIS key."

"But..." Donna looked at the ground, unable to think of anything to say.

"It was the Racnoss firing squad all over again. You risked your life for someone you hardly knew."

"My life was already well at risk!"

"Yeah but you gave the only thing that could have helped you, to him."

"But..." Donna hardly knew why this made her feel defensive. "It wasn't, you know, turning the other cheek or anything like that. It was just...we were all adults. And he wasn't. He was terrified. I thought he should be protected."

"Exactly," the Doctor said gently. "No adult in Peter's life had ever done that for him before. Most children in this room were sent away for love and with love. Peter was sent because, as he told us, it bought his parents protection _and_ also because he was a trouble maker. They barely knew him or wanted to know him. They sent him here because it was easy. You saw his attitude and you also saw that there was something behind it."

"Oh." Donna looked away, not wanting to meet the Doctor's eyes. She felt vulnerable.

"I watched him," the Doctor continued. "That whole time we were on the move, he stuck close to you and he watched over you, right until we were separated. And you did the same for him. He appreciated that, Donna and he always will."

"I wish you'd told me this when we'd already said goodbye to him," Donna said. Suddenly she could see the motivation behind some of the Doctor's sudden disappearances. Jack had come and sat beside them and he gave her shoulder a quick squeeze.

"So, did he tell you anything else when you met him?"

"Yeah," the Doctor said. "He told me that I should look at the picture of him on page 52 on a book written by a certain Catherine Hayes. 'Course, I didn't know then who that was." He nodded across the room to where Louisa and Catherine sat, talking to a Viran couple.

"So we have to wait until she grows up and _writes_ the book?" Donna asked.

"Well...no," Jack said, again sounding sheepish. He reached into his coat and pulled out a battered looking novel.

"_Across the Stars: The Journey To and Beyond Vira_." Donna read. "Wow!"

"Your research into this mission was supposed to be...slightly more technical," the Doctor said.

Jack looked slightly defensive.

"It's got good information," he said. "Besides, she writes well. I couldn't stop reading it once I started. And when I saw the mention of you two..."

"_What_?"

Jack flipped through the book and opened it on a hazy looking picture.

"They must have got most of the pictures from the security cameras," he said. "It's not either of your best sides."

"It's terrible," Donna said, "I look all red and blotchy and..." She leaned forward to read the caption.

"_Doctor....? and his wife, Donna-gave valuable assistance to the crew on one or two occasions. Passengers recall this couple as particularly amorous_."

"Amorous? Oh God!" Donna buried her face in her hands. Jack nudged her.

"Cheer up, Donna! Could be worse! You'll like what's on page 52!" He leafed through the book again and handed it to her.

"Keep that out of sight," the Doctor muttered, looking over at Catherine and Louisa. "Do we really want to create another paradox?"

Donna stared at the page. There was an adult Peter, barely recognisable, with a small, pale child in his arms. She had curly hair and both smiled cheerfully at the camera. She traced the outline with a finger. The child definitely had Viran blood.

"Read the caption," Jack said quietly.

"_Peter Murray, (evacuee) and agent for the Time Organisation. Pictured with his daughter, Donna Noble Murray."_

"You've made her cry," the Doctor said accusingly to Jack as he took the book.

"Wow! Donna! A child of a whole new generation named after you! That's something I haven't even managed to achieve!"

"Yeah, well..." She sniffed. "Not many people fancy calling their child Doctor, do they?"

The Doctor smiled vaguely and flicked through the book.

"Anything else interesting?"

"Just one more thing," Jack said. "I'll tell you right...about...now."

Clara had come back to them, Jenny in tow. The Doctor put the book into his pocket.

"Jack..." she began, twisting her hand awkwardly.

"Don't tell me," Jack said, leaning back in his chair. "You've decided that you want to stay here. They want to begin a Time Agency of their own to travel back and regain as much of their lost history as they can. You want to be part of it."

Clara's mouth dropped open.

"How'd you...?"

"I know everything," he said smoothly.

Donna leaned over and whispered to him.

"Is she in the book too?"

"Yes. Plenty of mentions of _Doctor_ Clara Stokes in chapter 8!"

"Jenny, I'd ask you to stay with all my heart," Clara said, "but I think you're where you're supposed to be right now."

Jenny smiled back at her.

"I'll come and see you," she said, "now I have some help figuring out the whole space travel thing."

The Doctor stood up and held out a hand to Clara.

"You've always got a lift home, Clara. Whenever you need it. Remember that."

"Thank you," she said quietly.

Peter came out of the room, turning to say something to a tall man who had escorted him out.

"Everything ok?" the Doctor asked.

"Yeah," Peter looked back at the man. "He's a philosopher. At least, that was the nearest thing I could think of, the way he explained it. And he researches the theories of time travel!"

"He looks nice," Donna said.

Peter took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

"I think he will be," he said finally.

Donna stood up and put her arms around him. It wasn't as if she could thank him, she knew that. His arms tightened around her and he whispered,

"I'll miss you."

"Me too." She opened her hand and held it out to him.

"I can't take it," Peter said, looking at the chain. "Your granddad gave you that."

"You can," she said, "and no one would be more chuffed than him to know where and to whom it had gone to. Please."

He took the chain and clutched it tightly, nodding at her.

"What's your grandfather's name?"

"Wilfred. Wilfred Noble."

"Tell Wilfred Noble that I said hello. Hello from Vira." He offered her a small smile and she saw in his expression, something of the man in the photo clutching the small child in his arms.

"Be magnificent, Peter," she said softly.

.....................................

The TARDIS seemed to take longer than usual before they were in motion again.

"She's been through a lot," the Doctor said, lowering his voice as if to respect her sensibilities. He looked at Jack, frowning slightly. "Are you sure you're feeling alright?"

"Yeah, fine," Jack said, sounding slightly distracted. His cheery mood seemed to have evaporated since they left Vira and now in the bright light of the console room, he guessed that he looked how he felt, pale and tired.

"Jack," the Doctor looked around for Donna and Jenny but Donna was giving Jenny a quick tour of the console room. "Jack...what you said about your brother. I wanted to say that...well, I won't insult your intelligence by saying that it wasn't your fault because a part of you knows that, just as another part of you won't accept it. But I wanted you to know that I understand."

"Thank you," Jack said quietly. Somewhere in the history of the Time War, there was an equivalent of Gray for the Doctor. Or more than one. Maybe a whole race of them. Spend five minutes with the Doctor and you would know that. But hearing it said meant everything when you spent so much time stuck in a loop of remembering, of dreaming you'd done it differently and clinging to the dream in so many waking moments.

............................................

Donna looked at Jack as she led Jenny back into the console room. He had seemed fine during their time on Vira but now he looked exhausted. The Doctor was giving him that look that meant he was worried and pretending not to be.

"Maybe you have this same allergy," she suggested, indicating her arms, where the redness was slowly fading.

"You will, but it shouldn't be affecting you now," the Doctor said.

"I'm fine, really," Jack said, in an end-of-discussion tone. He seemed to force a smile as he looked around. "It's not like we'll run into huon particles on a daily basis anyway."

"Don't say that," Donna said, nodding towards the Doctor, "he'll think it's a dare!"

Jack followed her glance to where the Doctor had moved to show Jenny the console screen.

"Do you ever try and weigh this life we have against...the other kind of life?"

Donna nodded.

"I can't, though. It's impossible to get a measure."

"Yeah. They don't sit well together, do they?"

"No...but then again," she looked around the room, "there's lots of different ways to acquire a family."

"Well you certainly proved that!"

She nudged him.

"I can think of four people who'll be anxiously awaiting your return on Earth. Not to mention three who'd be just as happy if you stayed here travelling with us. That's not that different from actual, conventional family now, is it?"

"I saw lots of different kinds of families while I travelled," Jenny said, "even if they were...not at all like humans, I still saw that they were families. Isn't that strange?"

"Some things never change the further you go," the Doctor said.

"And those kids will prove that when they return to Earth someday," Jack said.

Jenny sat on the floor, leaning against the console.

"How are you feeling?" the Doctor asked her.

"Fine. A bit tired but better than I have in ages," she said. "I guess I didn't realise how much it was taking out of me until the end. It was draining me."

"I'm so sorry," the Doctor said.

"For what?" She traced her finger along the side of the console. "It was my idea. My research. Mine and Clara's. I'm proud of what we did."

"You've every right to be," he said decisively.

Donna wandered over to the couch and settled herself on it, closing her eyes as she felt the softness of the cushions against her cheek.

"Are _you_ feeling alright?" The Doctor's voice asked. "I haven't forgotten your concussion. I mean, I had, sort of, just for a while there but not for long! Is there anything you need?"

"Just tired," she said.

"Maybe I should check you over though just to be sure."

"Hands off!"

"The amorous couple," Jack said, not quite under his breath.

"Sorry I couldn't help you more when you hit your head," Jenny said.

"S'ok," she murmured, wondering if they'd take the hint and let her doze.

"Donna," the Doctor continued, "come on, let's get something to eat! Or better still, we'll head somewhere and..."

"Doctor!" Jack sounded amused. "She's fine. Let her sleep! We're all fine, despite deadly allergies, poisoning, concussions and intoxication! Things aren't always too good to be true."

"Well said," Donna said, without bothering to open her eyes.

"Try living my life," the Doctor muttered. "Anyway, I never get this human thing of wanting to sleep when the excitement's over!"

"Getting some well earned sleep before you land us into the next one."

"The next one! Exactly! Where to? I was thinking Planet..."

"Earth," Donna and Jenny said at the same time. They opened their eyes and smiled at each other.

"Earth? But..." He looked disappointed. "We've so much to show Jenny!"

"Yeah...on Earth. She's never had fish and chips. Never been to a pub. Or a cocktail party in the 20s. Or..."

"Cardiff," Jack suggested helpfully.

"Ok, I get it," the Doctor said, but he was smiling. "Earth it is."

"Think I'll go home for a visit," Donna said. It was a while since she'd been home, or even phoned them, she thought guiltily. Come to think of it, they hadn't phoned her either. She might have some grovelling to do. Besides, it would be nice for the Doctor and Jenny to have some time on their own. Neither of them would ever ask for it but it would definitely do them good. She looked at the Doctor and raised an eyebrow.

"No need for a speech now. I'll be back in a day or two." She turned to Jenny. "He likes to make these speeches when we go away, even for an hour or two!"

"You never made me a speech!" Jack said.

"One day I'll surprise you with one," the Doctor said cheerfully. "Anyway, you tend to turn up again, don't you? You're more dependable in that regard."

"Oi! So am I!" Donna said indignantly. "And I think we can safely say Jenny is too!"

"Fine," Jack said, "anyway if no one objects, I think I need a pick-me-up!" He reached into his coat and pulled out a bottle of very familiar liquid.

"Viran Vodka, anyone? Jenny, you'll give it a try. And Donna! You're an old hand at this!"

"No, I don't think they should be drinking right now," the Doctor said, "nor you, come to that."

"Oooh, he's getting all protective now," Donna said. She twisted her head slightly to see the Doctor. He was looking at the three of them with a half-smile on his face.

"Thank you," he mouthed to her.

"Thank you," she whispered back.

"Did you bring any souvenirs of this trip?"

"Only one."

She pulled out her TARDIS key and placed it carefully on the table next to her, next to the battered copy of Catherine's book.

"Page 52," the Doctor murmured.

"Page 52." She smiled sleepily at him and closed her eyes.

This time, they let her sleep.

_The End_

_Thank you all so much for the fantastic reviews, they are so much appreciated, and for reading:)  Would anyone like to read another?_


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